Stay out late tonight! Orionid Meteor Shower peak 1-6AM

Posted by: Ian – Oct 20, 2009

My friend Ann brought this to my attention. She's a dedicated stargazer, utterly fascinated with the universe that surrounds us as we hurdle through space on this tiny speck of rock and water. I can't even count the cool things she's pointed out to me, sitting on her roof with a cup of tea and a handrolled clove cigarette. Several pictures in her Flickr Richmond Stars are tagged with which celestial bodies can be seen in the image, including the above image, which is of Orion (which also happens to be where one should be gazing to see tonight's display!)

From National Geographic:

Earth is currently plowing through space debris left behind by a visitor that last swung by during the Reagan Administration.

Spawned by Halley's Comet, which last buzzed the planet in 1986, the tiny space rocks are the seeds of the annual Orionid meteor shower.

At its peak before sunrise Wednesday morning, the Orionids shower should produce 20 to 25 meteors an hour—a "relatively decent show," according to astronomer Anita Cochran, of the University of Texas at Austin's McDonald Observatory.

And don't worry if you miss the Wednesday peak: The Orionids are currently being created by a broad stream of debris, which means the best views should be available several nights around the peak, experts say.