With the event simply around the corner, lets look at the potential for the shower, what went down throughout meteor storms of yore, and more.
Whats actually getting meteor shower scientists delighted is Earths 2022 encounter with the comets 1995 fragmentation stream. Usually, a ZHR of 1,000 or greater is thought about the casual cutoff for a meteor storm, versus a paltry meteor shower. Usually during the yearly Geminids or Perseids, youll see a meteor or 2 once every minute or so; at a rate of over a thousand per hour, youre seeing a meteor every couple of seconds, consisting of brilliant fireballs. The source of this shower is the now defunct lost comet 3D/Biela believed to have fragmented and produced some of the fantastic meteor storms of the late 19th century.
The radiant for the tau Herculid meteors. Credit: The American Meteor Society
Whats actually getting meteor shower scientists delighted is Earths 2022 encounter with the comets 1995 fragmentation stream. This event saw the comet significantly increase 400-fold in brightness. Now, the comet is no place near the Earth at this time– its in fact 1.4 Astronomical Units (AU) distant, in truth– but the 1995 occasion ought to have set a good particle stream for our reasonable world to encounter.
As of writing this, the American Meteor Society (AMS) has actually improved the key encounter time to 4:45 -5:17 Universal Time (UT)/ 12:45 -1:17 AM U.S. Eastern Time EDT on the morning of Tuesday, May 31st or 9:45 -10:17 PM Pacific Time PDT on the evening of Monday, May 30th. The glowing will be right at the zenith for Baja California around this time, though the majority of North and South America will be well-placed to witness any uptick in meteor activity. The Moon likewise reaches New the day prior on May 30th … another plus.
The elevation of the meteor shower glowing above the local horizon in degrees at the essential time of 1:00 UT on the early morning of May 31st. Credit: IMCCE
If we get a 10-fold increase from the tau Herculids we might see a Zenithal Hourly Rate (ZHR) of ~ 140 meteors per hour– similar to the annual Geminids or Perseids. Things might get intriguing if we reach a 100-fold or higher boost … well.
Comet 73P. Credit and copyright: Michael Jaeger.
However, a couple of caveats are in order. Its unknown just how much and in what instructions Comet 73P ejected particles during the 1995 event: this could contribute to a more intense (or weaker) storm than expected. The tau Herculid stream is approaching the Earth from behind, making them a slower shower needing larger particles than usual to light up the sky. Lastly, keep in mind that ZHR numbers are an ideal rate, presuming dark skies with the glowing directly overhead … most observers will see less in truth.
Anatomy of a Meteor Storm
Usually, a ZHR of 1,000 or higher is considered the informal cutoff for a meteor storm, versus a paltry meteor shower. Generally during the annual Geminids or Perseids, youll see a meteor or 2 when every minute or so; at a rate of over a thousand per hour, youre seeing a meteor every few seconds, consisting of intense fireballs.
The 1833 Leonid Meteor storm, as seen over Niagara Falls. Credit: Edmund Weiß (1888 )
Over the last few years, we saw the 2012 Giacobinids (Draconids) flirt with storm levels, with a ZHR of over ~ 900 per hour. The anatomy of the 2022 tau Herculids bears some resemblance to another terrific storm of the past: the now defunct Andromedids. The source of this shower is the now defunct lost comet 3D/Biela believed to have fragmented and produced a few of the terrific meteor storms of the late 19th century.
Observing a Meteor Storm
The excellent news is, you do not require any unique equipment to watch a meteor storm: simply clear skies and patience. Meteor storms do not read predictions, and might always kick off a bit earlier than anticipated.
You can even hear meteors ping over a radio tuned to an uninhabited frequency on the FM dial. Make sure to dress warm (even in May), bring a yard chair, bug spray, and find as dark an observing website as possible … also, bring a friend or more along to enjoy various patches of sky and increase the opportunities of capturing meteors as they flit by. Intense fireballs have actually even been known to hiss by means of an odd phenomenon known as electrophonic sound.
Long-range cloud cover forecast for CONUS around 2 AM EDT, Tuesday, May 31st. Blue locations are expected to have low cloud cover, gray high. Credit: NOAA
Since composing this, cloud cover prospects for the adjoining United States seem primarily beneficial. It might be worth having a look at the action on NASAs all-sky meteor electronic camera network if youre clouded out.
Imaging a meteor storm is as simple as establishing a tripod-mounted DSLR electronic camera with a wide-field lens, setting the focus and top priority to Manual/Bulb settings, then taking a few fast test shots to get the ISO/exposure/f-stop settings right for the sky conditions and seeing what turns up. I like to utilize an intervalometer to automate the procedure, and simply set it as much as take successive series of shots, permitting me to kick back and enjoy the shower visually.
Likewise, make certain to count meteors and report what you see to the International Meteor Organization (IMO). This data will go a long method towards meteor science and modeling meteor streams and showers in the future.
Finally, be client on your meteor vigil. You may see absolutely nothing at all … or witness the phenomenon of a life time. Clear skies, and excellent luck!
Initially published on Universe Today.
This infrared image from NASAs Spitzer Space Telescope reveals the damaged Comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 skimming along a path of particles left during its numerous journeys around the sun. The flame-like things are the comets pieces and their tails, while the dirty comet trail is the line bridging the pieces. Credit: NASA
Be sure to see for a potential tau Herculid meteor outburst early Tuesday morning if skies are clear.
With a little cosmic luck, we could possibly remain in for a meteor storm of epic percentages tonight/tomorrow morning. As already reported, astronomers are delighted about the possibility of an amazing new meteor shower on May 30-31. Whether it is amazing or absolutely nothing comes down to the timing of Earths crossing of the cometary orbits. With the event simply around the corner, lets take a look at the prospective for the shower, what decreased during meteor storms of yore, and more.
tau Herculids: The Story Thus Far
The source of the shower is short duration Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3. Renaming the shower the Boötids is also troublesome, as theres likewise currently a June meteor shower of the very same name.