The Leonid meteor shower is expected to produce a spectacular eruption from the 18th to the 19th of November, as a result of which we can observe more than a hundred shooting stars per hour in the morning sky – announced the Svábhegyi Csillagvizsgáló.
As can be read in the announcement sent to MTI, although the Leonid meteor shower does not usually enrich us with many shooting stars, it is still very famous because it produces significant eruptions every 33 years. The next such large eruption is expected in 2032. However, according to research, an old dust cloud of the swarm will hit us this year as well, so according to estimates, we can expect more than a hundred shooting stars every hour.
We can see meteors, or shooting stars when a grain of dust or a small piece of stone enters the Earth’s atmosphere at high speed and, braking due to the resistance of the medium excites the molecules of the air to glow.
The Leonids formed in the wake of comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, the orbit of which the Earth passes once a year.
The Leonids are close to the earth between October 20 and November 30 every year. The meteor shower is named after the constellation of the lion (Leo), as the meteors appear to come from this constellation during the shooting star.
They recalled that in 1733, Tempel-Tuttle unexpectedly blew off a large cloud of dust, and this cloud, which was dropped 9 orbits ago, is currently meeting the Earth this year. As a result, the Earth races into a dense cloud of cometary dust, which can result in many beautiful shooting stars in the sky.
According to astronomers, the current eruption will not be as big as the 1833 event. At that time, it is estimated that no less than a hundred thousand meteors crossed the sky in one hour, and it will probably not catch up with the regular eruptions every 33 years. At the same time, instead of the typical 15-20 meteors per hour, according to the most optimistic estimates, we can now see up to 200-300, which is twice the frequency of the summer Perseids.
According to astronomers, the number 200 is an upper estimate, as we could see that much if the radian point were located above our heads. “Fortunately, this point will be quite high above the horizon even now, it will reach 60 degrees by dawn. But there may still be shooting stars that flash below our horizon.
Even with all this, the forecasts are uncertain, so you should not be discouraged if instead of a spectacular eruption, you only see an average Leonid maximum
– can be read in the post published on the website of the observatory.
The usual maximum of the Leonids is expected around 1 am. However, astronomers expect the collision with the dust cloud, and thus the maximum of the meteor eruption, between 7 and 8:30 in the morning, when the sun already rises in our country. Despite this, as they write, its observation is not hopeless, the beginning of the meteor eruption will probably be visible at dawn.
It is worth observing the shooting star with the naked eye in the hours before sunrise, between approximately 5:30 and 7:30 in the morning, in a south-southeast direction, from a place where the sky is not covered by trees and other landmarks.
As written, the evening of Friday, November 18 at the Svábhegy Observatory is dedicated to this swarm. Although visitors can only enjoy the basic activity of the swarm in the evening, they can learn a lot of interesting facts about meteors and get their hands on selected specimens. Detailed information about the program can be found on the website of the Svábhegyi Csillagvizsgáló.
