Thursday, May 22, 2014

Meteor STORM! -- Celestial Fireworks!

Catch a shooting star?  Make a wish, it might just be your lucky day!

This Memorial Day Weekend may set the stage for a possible "Meteor Storm" early on Saturday morning.  Earth has NEVER encountered this particular meteor shower before from Comet 209P/Linear which is expected to flare into the Camelopardalis meteor shower!  Comet 209P/Linear was originally discovered in 2004 and very recently had its orbital path disturbed by the planet Jupiter just enough to place earth's orbit in the path of the comets tail of dust and debris this weekend. 

This first of its kind encounter has scientist both anxious and uncertain on if this event will sizzle or fizzle.  The amount of shooting stars depends on the unknown amount of debris of dust that remains in the comets tail from prior orbits hundreds of years ago.  Some experts are predicting a show of "Celestial Fireworks" with several hundred meteors per hour!  Pictured below is the expected path of earth through the comet debris zone early on Saturday morning.  The expected peak viewing will be from 2 AM to 4 AM on Saturday morning. 


 
Here are some details you need to know:

 
Here is more information from and a great read from www.space.com

 
Better yet, the weather looks more than exceptional Saturday morning!  A perfect 10 for viewing the shooting stars. Clear skies, cool and crisp with temperatures falling back into the upper 40s! Set your alarm and wake up for this one, you won't be alone gazing at the shooting stars.

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