The Lyrid meteor shower will be visible throughout the day on Thursday, and astronomers expect its climax at around 1 pm. “Since the peak occurs during the day, the best time to try to spot the pigeons would be before sunrise on the 22nd or after sunset,” Tania de Salles Marquez, astronomer at the Royal Observatory of Greenwich, told the Palestinian News Agency.
“It is expected that this meteorite will produce about 18 meteors per hour.”
Ms De Sales Marquez added that since the moon will be humping, there will be an extremely bright light in the sky which means conditions are “not very favorable”.
The Lyrid meteors are named after the constellation Lyra the Harp, where shooting stars seem to have sprung.
Meteors are created when rocks or space debris burn out in Earth’s atmosphere, creating long streaks of light.
These meteorites are bits of debris falling from Comet Thatcher, which is expected to return to the inner solar system in 2276, after an orbital period of 415 years.
De Sallis Marquez said: “Lyrids were seen as long ago as 687BC, which is the oldest known record of any meteor showers still visible today.
“It’s a mild shower with occasional fireballs, it’s called Lyrid Fireballs.”
Star-watchers who want to see the meteor shower will also be able to spot the star of Vega, which is the brightest star of Lyra.
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“As with any star gazing, you will need to allow your eyes for at least 15 minutes to adjust to the dark.”
Lyrids occur between April 16-25 every year.
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