Draconids
Encyclopedia
The October Draconids, in the past also unofficially known as the Giacobinids, are a meteor shower
whose parent body is the periodic comet
21P/Giacobini-Zinner. A Draconid meteor shower is expected to happen in early October of 2011, and the best nights for viewing are expected to be October 8–10. The Draconids are best viewed after sunset in an area with a clear dark sky. The 1933 and 1946 Draconids had Zenithal Hourly Rate
s of thousands of meteors visible per hour. Rare outbursts in activity can occur when the Earth travels through a denser stream of the cometary debris; for example, in 1988, rates suddenly spiked and spiked again in 2005. Almost all meteors which fall towards Earth burn up and disintegrate long before reaching its surface.
On October 8, 2011, between 16h and 22h Universal Time, the shower is expected to be stronger than normal, and could reach from 60 to 600 meteors per hour for a brief period of time, though a waxing gibbous Moon will disturb the observations in the sense that only the brightest meteors may be visible because of the moonlight. Predictions vary about how many meteors may be visible during the peak times; some forecasts suggest there could be meteors visible every minute, while other forecasts suggest there could be only a few per hour. Observers in the United Kingdom
and Northern Europe
are best situated to see the peak activity of the meteor storm on the night of October 8, 2011, (North America
will be experiencing daytime when the peak is expected to happen) but meteors may be visible in many locations nevertheless from the 7th through the 9th. For viewing meteors, it is advised to get away from bright lights as much as possible during the night.
Meteor shower
A meteor shower is a celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate from one point in the night sky. These meteors are caused by streams of cosmic debris called meteoroids entering Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds on parallel trajectories. Most meteors are smaller...
whose parent body is the periodic comet
Comet
A comet is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a visible coma and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet...
21P/Giacobini-Zinner. A Draconid meteor shower is expected to happen in early October of 2011, and the best nights for viewing are expected to be October 8–10. The Draconids are best viewed after sunset in an area with a clear dark sky. The 1933 and 1946 Draconids had Zenithal Hourly Rate
Zenithal Hourly Rate
In astronomy, the Zenithal Hourly Rate of a meteor shower is the number of meteors a single observer would see in one hour under a clear, dark sky if the radiant of the shower were at the zenith...
s of thousands of meteors visible per hour. Rare outbursts in activity can occur when the Earth travels through a denser stream of the cometary debris; for example, in 1988, rates suddenly spiked and spiked again in 2005. Almost all meteors which fall towards Earth burn up and disintegrate long before reaching its surface.
On October 8, 2011, between 16h and 22h Universal Time, the shower is expected to be stronger than normal, and could reach from 60 to 600 meteors per hour for a brief period of time, though a waxing gibbous Moon will disturb the observations in the sense that only the brightest meteors may be visible because of the moonlight. Predictions vary about how many meteors may be visible during the peak times; some forecasts suggest there could be meteors visible every minute, while other forecasts suggest there could be only a few per hour. Observers in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Northern Europe
Northern Europe
Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...
are best situated to see the peak activity of the meteor storm on the night of October 8, 2011, (North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
will be experiencing daytime when the peak is expected to happen) but meteors may be visible in many locations nevertheless from the 7th through the 9th. For viewing meteors, it is advised to get away from bright lights as much as possible during the night.
External links
- Draconid Meteors Over Spain (Astronomy Picture of the DayAstronomy Picture of the DayAstronomy Picture of the Day is a website provided by NASA and Michigan Technological University . According to the website, "Each day a different image or photograph of our universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer."The photograph is not necessarily...
2011 October 19)