Meteor shower Eta Aquarid 2019: rush hour and how to watch

Halley's comet will not return to the skies until the 2060s. But this weekend, you can get a glimpse of it under the Eta Aquarid meteor shower.

The Earth is currently crossing an area of ​​debris created as a result of the comet's tail. When the debris reaches our atmosphere, they will burn and saturate the night sky in the form of meteors in the hours leading up to the dawn of May 5th. Fortunately, the moon will be only a small silver crescent. view.

These meteors are named "Eta Aquarid". And they seem to emanate from the constellation Aquarius, which takes the form of a guy who pours a jug of water for eternity.

More precisely: the meteors escape from a star near the top of the constellation named Eta Aquarii. We find this part of debris in October, when the sky lights up in the Orionid meteor shower. During this shower – you guessed it – the meteors seem to emanate from the constellation of Orion.

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According to NASA, Eta Aquarids are particularly fast meteors, which "can leave glistening 'trains' (glowing debris in the wake of the meteor) lasting from seconds to minutes.

NASA Remarks It will be easier to spot meteorite rain in the southern hemisphere because Aquarius is higher in the sky for this half of the globe. In the northern hemisphere, Aquarius is closer to the horizon.

Those of us in the north could see about 10 meteors per hour grazing the horizon in the hours leading up to dawn. People in the southern hemisphere can see more at 40 per hour.

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Here are NASA's tips on how to watch:

To see the Eta Aquarids, find a place well away from the lights of the city or the street. Get ready with a sleeping bag, blanket or garden chair. Lie on your back, feet facing east and look up at the sky taking the most of the sky. After about 30 minutes in the dark, your eyes will adapt and you will start to see meteors. Be patient – the show will last until dawn, so you'll have plenty of time to take a look.