Meteor shower peaks tonight: How to watch Eta Aquariid in the night sky

Saleen Martin, USA TODAY
·2 min read
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The milky way and meteors of the April Lyrids annual meteor shower are seen in the night sky over Burg auf Fehmarn on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn, northern Germany, on April 20, 2018. This year the shower will peak on April 21-22.

The Eta Aquariid meteor shower outburst is expected to peak Thursday night and Friday morning and this year, researchers say it won't be one to miss.

The meteor shower is active throughout April and May, peaking in the pre-dawn hours of May 5, NASA said.

“A meteor shower is like a normal rain shower, with 50-60 meteors per hour,” said Bill Cooke, lead of NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office, on NASA’s website. “An outburst is like a thunderstorm, with greater than normal meteor activity expected. A meteor storm is like a tornado, where meteor rates are over one thousand per hour.”

This year, researchers predict there will be 120 to 160 meteors per hour. Eta Aquariid produces the sixth most fireballs among meteor showers, per NASA camera data.

Where do the fireballs come from?

The fireballs are the result of Earth running into a dense stream of debris from the Comet Halley. Much of it was ejected over 3,000 years ago.

It happens every year between mid-April and the end of May, the American Meteor Society said. Every 76 years, Halley’s comet passes through the inner solar system and each passage creates a new stream of particles as they separate from the comet, the AMS said.

When is the Eta Aquariid meteor shower? How can I watch?

Meteors can be seen after midnight but the peak times are 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. until dawn.

Those who want to tune in can watch the meteor shower from the northern and southern hemispheres, NASA said. Those in the southern hemisphere will have a better view because of the radiant’s location in the constellation of Aquarius.

Those in California may be able to see an average of 10 or more fireballs per hour if they’re watching from very dark places, the Redding Record Searchlight, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported.

NASA said the best areas to see the shower are away from city lights.

The meteors' debris and speed − 148,000 miles per hour − create glowing "trains" in their wake, which space enthusiasts eagerly watch out for during these events, according to NASA. They can last for seconds or even minutes.

What else should I do to prepare? Get your eyes ready

Space experts say it’s best to prepare your eyes to watch the shower. Give yourself about 30 minutes in the dark and avoid looking at your phone. That way, your eyes can adapt, NASA said.

“Look AWAY from the moon and take in as much sky as possible,” NASA said.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Meteor shower tonight: How to see Eta Aquariid fireballs on May 4, 5