Rainy weather expected to impact viewing of Eta Aquarids meteor shower
A very cloudy and even rainy scenario is unfolding over the tri-state area and will hang on at least through Wednesday night.
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Don’t get your hopes up about May’s annual meteor shower next week. It looks like the weather will get in the way of seeing the Eta Aquarids.
A very cloudy and even rainy scenario is unfolding over the tri-state area and will hang on at least through Wednesday night. The meteor shower peaks Monday night into Tuesday morning (May 5-6). Even though we won’t be able to view the peak, it’s possible there may be a few meteors hanging on through the end of the month.
The Eta Aquarids come from debris left over from Halley’s Comet. The best time to view this shower is after midnight and during the pre-dawn hours if we have a clear sky. This shower is famous for its fast meteors with bright trains and a few larger fireballs.
It’s a strong shower when viewed from the Southern Tropics, but here in the Northern Hemisphere, we see less. Rates may go as high as 30 meteors per hour, but in the tri-state area, it will be much less, and below 10 per hour.
Comet Halley is now at its farthest point from the sun and won’t return to the inner solar system until 2061. It was last seen in 1986, but the debris trails that produce the shower were left hundreds of years ago. The Earth will run into more debris from Halley's comet in October to form the Orionid meteor shower.
