Nature's Fireworks Are Putting Up A Light Show! Look Up The Orionids Are Here!

If you step outside before dawn during the next week, you might be able to see bright meteors in the sky, however tonight is the best night to see them especially since the moon is only at 6%, rendering the skies dark or what stargazers would call perfect for spotting meteor showers!             

The Orionid meteor shower, which will produce what has been popularly known as several shooting stars crossing the night skies, can be described as a version of the famous Perseid meteor shower. The meteors are known as "Orionids" because they seem to fan out from a region to the north of the constellation Orion’s second brightest star, Betelgeuse.          

The best time to see the meteor shower starts from 1 or 2 a.m. local time until around dawn, when the constellation Orion is highest above the horizon. The higher in the sky Orion is, the more meteors appear all over the bowl of the sky.          

The Orionids are one of just a handful of known meteor showers that can be observed equally well from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.               

The Orionids are one of the better annual displays, producing about 15 to 20 meteors per hour at their peak!          

The shower may be active for several days before or after its broad maximum, which may last from the 20th through the 24th.            


What to do:              

Take to higher grounds afar from light pollution. Take a blanket, build a small fire and maybe pack a bottle of wine or a beverage of your choice to keep warm.          

If you have a tent, set it up. Then just lie down with you head rested on the ground and just look up! The view is spectacular, that's a promise.            

Despair not, for even if you can't see the meteor shower from outside your home, you can watch it live online. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama will host a webcast. You can watch the meteor shower webcast on SPACE.com.          

Happy stargazing ya'll and please remember to share you photos with us by sending them to this email: digital@lbci.com            

If you're a fan of space and other stellar related articles then check this post out. It depicts a video of the known map of the universe! 


Nadine Mazloum is currently a freelance editor and news producer. She received her Honors in Communication Arts (Media Production) from The University of Western Sydney in 2008