Published Nov 13, 20257 minute readWeather permitting, under a dark sky away from city lights and light pollution, expect to see approximately 10 to 15 bright meteors per hour Nov. 18, with the best time likely coming in the pre-dawn sky. Gurpreet Singh/Unsplash Gurpreet Singh/UnsplashArticle contentThe Leonids meteor shower is one of the two best annual meteor showers to be seen in the Northern Hemisphere night sky, the other being the Perseids in August. Visible from approximately Nov. 3 to Dec. 2 each year, the Leonids are debris from Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, which has an orbital period of 33.17 years.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentGerman astronomer Wilhelm Leberacht Tempel, better known as Wlliam Tempel (1821-1889), was the first astronomer to independently discover the comet on Dec. 19, 1865. As there was no direct communication between Europe and America in those days (no telephones or internet), news of Tempel’s comet discovery did not reach American astronomers for some time. In the meantime, American astronomer Horace Parnell Tuttle (1837-1923) independently discovered the comet on Jan. 6, 1866. Consequently, the comet was subsequently named Comet Tempel-Tuttle, crediting both astronomers.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentArticle contentThe night the stars fellArticle contentComet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle has historically produced some of the most intense meteor storms. A meteor “storm” is a meteor shower event in which thousands of meteors streak across the sky per hour.Article contentThe Leonids’ claim as the most prolific meteor storm in recorded history stems from a first-person account by Joseph Harvey Waggoner (1820-1899), a minister who observed the meteor storm on the night of Nov. 12-13, 1833, “The Night the Stars Fell,” when the meteors fell at an estimated rate of 100,000 meteors/hour, leading many people to believe the world was ending.Article contentArticle content An engraving by Adolf Vollmy depicts the 1833 Leonids meteor storm and was made famous by a painting by Karl Jauslin. ESA European Space Agency – ESAArticle contentArticle contentWaggoner’s written account of the meteor storm was subsequently immortalized in a painting by Swiss painter Karl Jauslin (1842-1904)), itself inspired by the famous woodcut engraving of the 1833 storm by Adolf Vollmy in 1889. The 1833 Leonids were the first recorded meteor storm of modern times.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentArticle contentComet rediscoveredArticle contentAstronomers missed the comet’s return and associated meteor shower/storm in 1899, and again in 1932, when no significant meteor shower associated with Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle materialized. It wasn’t until 1965 that the comet was again recovered by astronomers. At that time, Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle shone only at mag. +16, visible only in very large telescopes.Article contentHowever, the meteor storm during the evening of Nov, 18,1966, was spectacular, with observers reporting 40-50 meteors/sec (approximately 2,400 – 3,000 meteors/min) over the southwest United States during a 15-minute period. On the morning of Nov. 19, 1966, Earth passed through another of the comet’s debris streams, producing thousands of meteors per hour over East Asia and Australia.Article contentThe next return of Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle occured in early 1998, when the comet was bright enough to be seen in binoculars; impressive meteor showers occurred in 1999-2001. During the pre-dawn hours of Nov.18, 2001, Earth plowed through a Tempel-Tuttle debris stream from the comet’s 1766 passage around the Sun, once again displaying thousands of meteors per hour over eastern North America and Hawaii. Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle’s next return will be in 2031.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentMeteor science changedArticle contentComet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle’s 1998 return was the first instance of the correct prediction for the exact time and intensity of a meteor shower, a calculation that forever changed meteor science.Article contentAstronomers analyzed filaments of material expelled from each of the comet’s trips through the inner Solar System and around the Sun. Different debris densities in the filaments, when intersected by Earth, produce different intensities of meteors observed (i.e., thicker filaments produce more meteors). If you would like to see an animated diagram of the debris filaments associated with Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, go to meteorshowers.org/view/Leonids.Article contentArticle content This photo of the Leonids was taken in 1998 by the Astronomical and Geophysical Observatory (AGO) in Modra, Slovakia with a fish-eye lens showing the whole sky. Juraj Toth, Comenius University, Bratislava/Astronomical Observatory Modra Juraj Toth, Comenius University,Article contentArticle contentArticle contentBest viewing timeArticle contentHowever, the Leonids meteor shower is nowhere as prolific these days as it was in the past, although meteor showers can, and do, sometimes unexpectedly produce numbers of meteors far in excess of what are predicted, depending on just how thick the debris stream from the comet is when Earth passes through it. Weather permitting, under a dark sky away from city lights and light pollution, expect this year to see approximately 10 – 15+ bright meteors per hour, with the best time likely coming in the pre-dawn sky when the shower radiant is highest in the sky. Light from the slender waning crescent moon (New Moon on Nov. 20) will not interfere.Article contentArticle contentThe constellation of Leo, the Lion, clears the northeast horizon around midnight local time, and remains visible all night, only fading from view with the approaching dawn.Article contentThe Leonids shower “radiant point,” the apparent point in the sky where the meteors seem to originate from, lies within the backwards question mark shape of the Lion’s head and chest (an asterism known as “The Sickle,” after its similarity to the crescent-shaped harvesting tool), near the star Algieba (from the Arabic for “the forehead”). The radiant point is actually an optical illusion, similar to the distant point along railway tracks where the two parallel rail tracks appear to converge to a single point. Similarly, the Leonids, which actually travel along parallel paths to one another across the sky, appear, like the railway tracks, to radiate from a single location.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentNo equipment neededArticle contentIf you want to observe the Leonids on any evening, and wish to know when and where the shower radiant will be at any given hour, go to timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/leonids.html. Click on the “visible in” box in the upper middle of the page that appears, and type in your location (or nearest large centre), clicking on “save” in the lower right-hand corner. Next, use the date dropdown above the interactive Meteor Shower Sky Map to change the date(s) you wish to view the Leonids, then move the indicator arrow down to the small red circle (which will then change to a hand) at the bottom of the sky map, where you can move either right or left to find the time and location of the shower’s radiant relative to your horizon. Farther down the page, you will find a time table for the visibility of the Leonids radiant corresponding to the date you selected above.Article contentAs with all meteor showers, you don’t need any special equipment; your eyes are the best instrument for observing any meteor shower. Most meteors appear approximately 30 degrees away from the radiant point, with the meteors streaking outward in all directions across the night sky.Article contentTo see the most meteors, place your back towards the constellation of Leo and look slightly upward at an angle, occasionally shifting your view to different areas of the night sky. November nights are definitely chilly, if not downright frosty, now, so dress for the weather, sit in a comfortable chair or lounger, and take something hot to drink.Article contentArticle contentWatching for planetsArticle contentMercury (mag. -0.8, in Scorpius – the Scorpion) is not observable this coming week, as it is 10 degrees below the western horizon at dusk. Mercury is at inferior solar conjunction (passes between the Sun and Earth) on Nov. 20, and at perihelion (its closest approach to the Sun) on Nov. 22. Venus (mag. -3.9, in Virgo – the Maiden) is also not observable this coming week, as it is no higher than 6 degrees above the eastern horizon at dawn. Likewise, Mars (mag. +1.4, in Scorpius) is not observable this coming week, as it is 2 degrees below the western horizon at dusk.Article contentArticle contentOn Nov.21, Mars and the one-day-old Moon are in close conjunction (they share the same right ascension), with the Moon passing just over 4 degrees south of Mars.Article contentJupiter (mag. -2.4, in Gemini – the Twins) becomes accessible around 9:30 p.m. AST when it reaches 7 degrees above the northeast horizon, reaching 65 degrees above the southern horizon around 4:15 a.m. AST, before getting lost in the dawn twilight around 6:55 a.m. AST, 48 degrees above the southwest horizon.Article contentSaturn (mag. +1.0, in Aquarius – the Water-bearer) becomes accessible when it reaches 27 degrees above the southeast horizon by about 5:20 p.m. AST, reaching its highest point in the sky 39 degrees above the southern horizon around 8:10 p.m. AST, and remaining observable until around 12:40 a.m. AST, when it sinks below 11 degrees above the western horizon.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentOn Nov.21, Mars and the one-day-old Moon are in close conjunction (they share the same right ascension), with the Moon passing just over 4 degrees south of Mars.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentUranus (mag. +5.6, in Taurus – the Bull) becomes accessible 21 degrees above the eastern horizon shortly before 7 p.m. AST, reaching its highest point in the sky 63 degrees above the southern horizon around 12:15 a.m. AST, and becoming inaccessible around 5:30 a.m., when it sinks below 21 degrees above the western horizon. Uranus reaches opposition (on the opposite side of Earth as seen from the Sun) on Nov. 21.Article contentArticle contentNeptune (mag. +7.8, in Pisces – the Fish) becomes accessible when it reaches 31 degrees above the southeast horizon shortly before 8 p.m. AST, reaching its highest point in the sky 42 degrees above the southern horizon by about 8:20 p.m AST., and remaining observable until it sinks below 21 degrees above the southwest horizon shortly after midnight AST.Article contentUntil next week, clear skies.Article contentArticle contentEvents:Article contentNov. 18 – Leonids meteor shower peaks; pre-dawn hoursNov. 19 – Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth); 406,000 kmNov. 20 – New Moon; 2:48 a.m. AST– Mercury at inferior solar conjunctionNov. 21 – Uranus at opposition– conjunction of 1-day old Moon and MarsNov. 22 – Moon at perihelion; closest approach to Sun; 0.9852 AU– Mercury at perihelion; closest approach to Sun; 0.32 AUArticle contentArticle content
ATLANTIC SKIES: The Leonids the meteor shower that revolutionized meteor science
