patching...
Welcome back, Patch Blogger!

Meteor Showers

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Two-fer: Brand New Meteor Shower May Coincide with Geminids 2012

NASA scientist says two debris streams may cross after sunset, Dec. 13.

There are plenty of meteor showers in the late fall – we’ve seen the Orionids in October, and the Taurids and Leonids in November. If you got outside at the right time, and the weather was nice, maybe you saw a few “shooting stars.” Tonight, however, may be different. That’s because we may be treated to not one, but two meteor showers at the same time, according to NASA. In addition to the peak of the Geminid shower, there may be a brand new meteor shower debuting after sunset tonight, Dec. 13. The new, as-yet-to-be-named shower is courtesy of Comet Wirtanen, discovered in 1948, according to Bill Cooke, from NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office.   As for the source of the Geminids, it’s somewhat of a mystery, Cooke said on NASA’s website. “…

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Perseid Meteor Shower: Space Junk Becomes Natural Fireworks This Weekend

Get out and enjoy the annual Perseid meteor shower.

Elizabeth Jeffery, Ph.D., is an astronomer and researcher at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore City. If wishes made on shooting stars come true, this could be your lucky weekend. Early Saturday morning marks the peak of the annual Perseid meteor shower. Few things give even a casual star gazer as much heart-jumping excitement as spotting a meteor. Meteors, sometimes called shooting or falling stars, are actually not stars at all. A meteor is created when a tiny piece of space junk (for example, a bit of dust or rock) enters the earth's atmosphere. As this small piece of debris flies high through the air, it encounters friction that makes it so hot it will burn up. As a result, a meteor appears as a quick, bright streak …

Got a Hot Tip?