| Title: |
Orionid Meteor Showers |
| Location: |
Hawaiian Islands |
| Date / Time: |
Oct. 20-22, 3:00AM - 5:30 AM |
| Comments: |
This year, the peak of the Orionid meteor shower occurs 5 days before Full Moon. However the bright Moon sets by 2AM, so early-morning observers should be able to catch some meteor action. From moonset until sunrise, pre-dawn hours offer the best viewing. The meteors appear to originate or "radiate" from a spot in northeastern Orion, near it's border with Gemini. These are fast moving meteors, striking the Earth's atmosphere at 41 miles/second! Rates can reach 20 meteors/hour & occasionally more. Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through the path of a comet. The bits of debris left behind by comets, most no larger than a grain of sand, create a spectacular light show as they enter the Earth's atmosphere. The Orionid shower occurs when Earth's orbit intersects debris left behind by Halley's Comet, during its many passages through our solar system. |
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Maintained by Roz Reiner - Kauai, Hawaii
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