Lyrid meteor shower. Lyrid meteor shower: When, where and how to see it Lyrid meteor shower

At the end of April, astronomers in the northern hemisphere will have the opportunity to observe the Lyrid meteor shower, which is a dusty trail that has been orbiting the Sun for many centuries, the site reports with a link to space.com.

Astronomers will have a chance to see the Lyrid meteor shower in the sky between April 16 and April 25, 2017.

The best day to see the Lyrid meteor shower will be Saturday, April 22, said NASA meteor expert Bill Cook. Like most meteor showers, peak viewing time will be before dawn.

On average, the Lyrid meteor shower produces 15 to 20 meteors per hour, Cook said. In some years, the meteor shower intensifies and can produce up to 100 meteors per hour, a phase of meteor shower activity called a “burst,” but it is difficult to predict exactly when this will occur.

"Some believe there is a pattern in the frequency of outbreaks, but the available data does not support this. Although the average period between these outbreaks is 30 years, this is only an average; the actual number of years between outbreaks varies," Cook said.

Where to see the Lyrid meteor shower

The radiant, the point from which the meteors will appear, will be high in the evening sky in the constellation Lyra northeast of Vega, one of the brightest stars visible in the night sky at this time of year. Try to look beyond the radiant point, because then you might miss the long tails.

According to information collected by JoinFOMEdia journalist Olya Lexi, the new moon will appear only a few days later, on April 26. This is very fortunate because moonlight will not interfere with viewing the bright tails of meteors that they leave in the night sky. It's best to view this spectacle away from city lights, where the sky is usually much darker, so the meteor shower will appear much brighter.

"The Lyrid meteor shower is moderately bright, not as bright as the famous one in August, which tends to leave brighter trails," said Bill Cook.

What Causes the Lyrid Meteor Shower

The Lyrid meteors are small fragments of Comet Thatcher. This comet is a long-period comet, orbiting the Sun approximately once every 415 years. Debris and dust left behind by the comet's many orbits create the Lyrid meteor shower every year. Comet Thatcher's most recent perihelion, or closest approach to the sun, was in 1861. It will not return until 2276.

Meteor showers occur when the Earth crosses the path of a comet, colliding with cometary debris. That's why they occur around the same time every year, and come from specific points in the sky. When meteors burn up in the atmosphere, they leave bright streaks in the sky, usually called "shooting stars."

"The Lyrid meteors travel quite fast - although not as fast as the Leonids meteors, which peak in November," says Bill.

At the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower, about 20 stars can be seen in the sky per hour. This April, stargazers will be able to watch how it creates impressive images in the night sky. Team top tops info will tell you how best to organize your observation.

• Where and how to see the exciting astronomical event Lyra?

The astronomical extravaganza occurs every April, lasts a whole week, and allows you to see 20 meteors per hour. Move away from the light if you live in a city and can see the star shower with the naked eye. Although experts classify the possibility of this phenomenon as “average”. The phenomenon occurs as the Earth passes through dust left behind by Comet C/186 G1 Thatcher (it orbits the Sun once every 415 years).

• When will the Lyrid meteor shower peak?

The Lyrid meteor shower occurs in the last week of April every year. In 2018, the peak will occur on the night of April 22-23.

• Where is the best place to see “falling stars”?

People in the northern hemisphere, particularly Europe, will see a higher quality light show. As always, the best way to see the meteor shower is to make sure you are away from any light source.

• What's happened ?

This is one of the oldest known starfalls and is named after the constellation Lyra. It occurs when the Earth passes through an area of ​​the solar system where there is a lot of debris from a comet called C/186 Thatcher. The “garbage”, falling into the upper layers of the Earth’s atmosphere, evaporates, turning into a colorful meteor shower.

Before going to watch a meteorite event, look at the sky and make sure it is clear and there are no clouds nearby. If it's cloudy outside, you won't see much. Dress warmly. If desired, use sleeping bags to make yourself as comfortable as possible. Spend at least 30 minutes outside to get used to the darkness.

Once you have chosen a location, look up, select a section of the sky and observe it. If possible, look towards the star Vega, which is the second brightest star in the sky (in the northern hemisphere).

• Is any special equipment needed?

In 2017, the peak of the starfall falls on April 21-22, but the chances of making a wish among the inhabitants of the Earth remain almost until the end of the month.

Where, when and how

The Lyrid meteor shower can be observed from anywhere on the globe, but residents of the northern hemisphere, particularly Europe, will witness a brighter and more colorful spectacle.

The shower will peak on April 22, although isolated meteors have been visible since Sunday. This year the star shower will not be the most impressive, despite this, astronomers recommend not to miss this spectacular event.

Shooting stars will be best seen after midnight and before sunrise. The intensity of the meteor shower varies from year to year, with up to 15-20 meteors per hour expected this year.

The best way to see a meteor shower is to make sure you are away from any light source. You can observe a starfall without special equipment - flying meteors can be seen with the naked eye, you just need to raise your head to the constellation Lyra.

Moreover, you need to look not at the radiant itself, but slightly to the side from this point. The longest and brightest meteors are observed far from the radiant.

The Lyrid meteors are white and quite fast. They do not have noticeable tails, but are characterized by bright flashes. Meteors shoot out from a radiant that is actually an optical illusion.

Meteors move along parallel trajectories, but their flight appears as if they originate from a single point, just as parallel roads appear to converge at a single point beyond the horizon.

The moon at this time is in its last quarter phase, which will appear over the horizon only after 4:30 am, so it will practically not interfere with the night and morning observation of the first spring starfall.

The evenings are chilly, so dress warmly and make yourself as comfortable as possible. If desired, you can use sun loungers or sleeping bags. Spend at least 30 minutes outside to get used to the darkness.

Once you have chosen a location, look up, select a section of the sky and watch it, and they (meteors) will begin to appear. Meteors, as a rule, fly by in flashes and jerks with slight lulls between them.

By the way, pay attention to whether the meteor leaves a persistent ionized gas trail that glows for several seconds after the meteor passes.

Astronomers say that about a quarter of Lyrid meteors actually leave such trails.

Lyrids

Starfall is an unusually beautiful phenomenon that everyone dreams of seeing and making a wish accordingly. The nature of this phenomenon has interested astronomers since ancient times. Meteor showers are named not by the comets that gave birth to them, but by the constellations where the radiant is located.

The Lyrids are one of the oldest known starfalls and are named after the constellation Lyra. The radiant of the April shower lies on the border of the constellations Lyra and Hercules, but closer to Lyra.

Historical records show that people have been observing the Lyrids for more than 2,700 years - the ancient Chinese are believed to have observed "stars falling like rain" in March 687 BC.

And in April 1803, a real rain of meteors swept over the territory of the North American continent, which seemed to fly directly from the center of the Lyra constellation - the number of shooting stars reached 700 per hour.

Since then, the Lyrids have become a rather weak celestial show, but there are surprises that keep interest in this phenomenon.

So in 1922, the Lyrids again surprised astronomers and rained stars on the earth with an intensity of 1800 meteors per hour, and in 1982 they again showed activity, although much less - no more than 100 meteors per hour.

For several years now, astronomers have been trying to predict the possible intensity of the Lyrids this year or somehow explain the irregular bursts of their amazing activity. So far they have not succeeded.

Why

The source of the Lyrid meteors is Comet Thatcher - every year, in the second half of April, planet Earth crosses the orbital path of Comet Thatcher (C/1861 G1), that is, passes through the dust left over from the comet.

Comet Thatcher last visited the inner solar system in 1861 and is not expected to return until 2276, as it orbits the Sun once every 415 years.

Pieces of rock ejected by this comet bombard the Earth's upper atmosphere at a speed of 177 thousand kilometers per hour.

The Lyrids are considered one of the most powerful meteor showers, along with the August Perseids and December Geminids. On rare occasions, Lyrid meteors can bombard the sky with nearly 100 meteors per hour.

The material was prepared on the basis of open sources.

Events

In the first week of 2013 you can expect first major meteor shower new year, which will allow many astronomy enthusiasts to start the new year by observing beautiful and amazing natural phenomenon .

The meteor shower, which was named Quadrantids, observed annually in the first week of January. Although it cannot be said that this phenomenon is superior in beauty and entertainment to other meteor showers of 2012, still it deserves attention.

If you are not afraid of freezing on winter nights and want to look at shooting stars, if visibility is good you will be able to see up to 40 bursting meteors per hour. However, due to the rather bright Moon these days, meteors will be difficult to notice.

The waning Moon is still in the phase when it provides enough light to outshine the small sparks of falling meteors. But if you are lucky and you go away from big cities somewhere into the countryside, on Thursday in the first hours after midnight You will be able to watch an impressive star show.

Falling quadrantid, burning in flight

Quadrantids meteor shower in the constellation Volapsus

Scientists suspect the Quadrantids meteor shower is made up of asteroid debris 2003 EH1. The same debris is the source of another meteor shower, the Geminids, which occurs in the first half of December. The asteroid itself may be a fragment of a crashed comet, which shattered into pieces several hundred years ago.

Skyscape depicting the Milky Way with falling quadrantids

Quadrantids are observed when the Earth passes through a debris flow. Fragments of a former asteroid fall into the atmosphere of our planet at a speed of about 145 thousand kilometers per hour and burn in it at a distance of about 80 kilometers above the surface.

This meteor shower takes its name from the northern hemisphere constellation Wall Quadrant , which is not recognized by astronomers today. The stars of this constellation are part of other constellations: Volapsa, Dragon And Hercules .

This meteor shower was first documented in 1825, when the Wall Quadrant constellation was still recognized.

This image schematically shows the sky pattern that can be observed on the night of January 4, 2013. The image can help observers find the location of a meteor shower's radiant, which is the area of ​​the sky that is the apparent source of meteors.

When will we look at meteor showers in 2013?

Lyrids

This meteor shower was named after the constellation Lyra because, when observed from Earth, meteoroids appear to fall from this constellation. This meteor shower first became known more than a thousand years ago, and the first mention of it dates back to 687.

Last year's diagram depicting the apparent source of the Lyrid meteor shower

This is not to say that the Lyrids are a very powerful stream. At maximum activity, it will be possible to observe an average of about 20 meteorites per hour, but with good visibility and cloudless spring skies, you can see a lot of interesting things.

Arietids

This meteor shower, expected in late spring, is named after the constellation Aries ( lat . Aries). Astronomers cannot agree on what is the source of this meteor shower. Some believe that these meteoroids are debris from the Icarus asteroid, others believe that their source is a comet 96P/Machholtz.

Diagram showing the Arietids radiant near the constellation Aries

This meteor shower difficult to see with the naked eye, since the Sun at this time is not far from the constellation Aries, but some astronomers still managed to notice the Arietids without binoculars or a telescope. This is usually possible an hour before sunrise.

Perseids

This amazing meteor shower can be observed in August in the area of ​​the constellation Perseus, This is where it got its name. The source of these meteors is comet Swift-Tuttle trail through which our planet passes, moving along its usual path.

The constellation Perseus, other nearby constellations and the Perseid radiant

The Perseids are a fairly powerful stream, one of the most powerful of the year. At peak activity, up to 100 shooting stars can be observed per hour, with the Perseids visible from almost anywhere on the planet, although shooting stars will be brighter in the Northern Hemisphere. Particles of dust, ice and rocks that the comet throws off, moving along its path, enter the Earth's atmosphere at incredible speed - more than 150 thousand kilometers per hour.

People who are not very familiar with this August phenomenon may mistake shooting stars for UFOs. It's hard to believe that most of the meteoroids that burn up in the atmosphere at this time, forming spectacular star showers, no bigger than a grain of sand.

Orionids

The Orionids got their name from the constellation Orion , in the area of ​​which they appear in October - early November. This meteor shower associated with Halley's Comet, through the plume of which the Earth sweeps twice a year: in spring and autumn. In the spring, a meteor shower associated with this comet is called eta aquarids , and the canopy - Orionids.

Fisheye image of the sky during the Orionid period

Leonids

The Leonids are born in the area of ​​the constellation Leo, which is why they got the name Leonids (lat. Leo).

The moment of the fall of the Leonids in the Northern Hemisphere

This meteor shower is associated with a comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, which revolves around the Sun noticeably for 33 years.

Geminids

Geminid radiant with nearby stars

The Geminids are a bright and visible meteor shower that can be observed in December. It was named after the constellation Twins (lat. Gemeni), as observed in his area. Observers in the Northern Hemisphere will be able to see the first Geminids meteors on December 6, with maximum activity (December 14), astronomers promise that it will be possible to see up to 120 meteorites per hour!

Geminids in December 2012 (video):

Ursids

The last noticeable meteor shower is expected at the very end of the year - the Ursids, named after the constellation Ursa Minor (lat. Ursa Minor), in the area in which the flow can be observed. At maximum activity, few meteors can be observed - only 10 per hour.

The Ursid radiant near the constellation Ursa Minor

This meteor shower has been observed since the beginning of the 20th century, but only in the 1970s it was possible to establish that the stream is associated with Comet Tuttle, the trail from the tail forms meteors.

Star Rain (video):

Observing meteors, or, as they are popularly called, “shooting stars,” is one of the most exciting astronomical spectacles. Unfortunately, the number of abundant showers, producing at most tens of meteors per hour, can be counted on the fingers of one hand. After the Quadrantids, which peak on January 3, there is a long pause until August, when the famous Perseids become active.

Against this backdrop, many meteor watchers are eagerly awaiting the appearance of the Lyrids, one of the last noticeable meteor showers before the onset of the short summer nights.

Lyrids is an annual meteor shower that usually peaks on April 22 or 23. Like other showers, the Lyrids get their name from the constellation where their radiant is located - namely the constellation Lyra. ( Radiant- a point in the sky from which, as it seems to the observer, meteors are flying out.)

Despite its relatively modest activity, this is a rather interesting stream, which, although it has a long history of observations, has not yet been studied well enough.

History of the Lyrids

On the night of April 19–20, 1803, a real meteor shower was observed over the eastern United States. Fast white meteors lit up in the sky almost every second; they flew out from the small constellation Lyra, marked in the sky by the bright star Vega. An amazing starfall - then about 700 meteors were observed in an hour! - did not repeat itself either next year or the year after, and attention to this phenomenon began to fade.

Witnesses of the 1803 Lyrid starfall probably observed a picture similar to this, when within a few minutes of exposure 3 meteors flew through the field of view of the camera. Source: NASA

Astronomers learned about the existence of annually recurring meteor showers 30 years later. In 1834, astronomers proved that the Leonid shower was a periodic source of meteors. After this, astronomers began to look for other constantly operating streams. The Lyrids were first pointed out in 1835 by the famous French astronomer Francois Arago, who drew attention to April 22 as a date of possibly high meteor activity. But the stream itself was discovered by the Austrian professor Edmond Weiss in 1869. At the same time, Johann Halle traced the history of the stream back to March 16, 687 BC, when it was observed in ancient China!

As is known, meteoroids are specks of dust, pebbles and pieces of ice that break away from comets and continue to move in their orbits. Therefore, many meteor showers are closely associated with known comets. The Lyrids are no exception. The vernal shower follows the orbit of Comet Thatcher (1861 GI), observed in 1861. This comet orbits the Sun in a very elongated orbit with a period of 415 years. It is clear that meteoroid bodies that stretch over time throughout the entire orbit of Comet Thatcher should have a lower concentration than bodies that stretch along the short-period comet. Therefore, even at moments of maximum activity, the Lyrid flow should not be too active. In general, this is true - on average, at the peak of the Lyrids they produce 10-15 meteors per hour.

However, the Lyrids know how to surprise. Over the entire history of observation, the stream has repeatedly produced unexpected bursts of activity. In 1803, as we mentioned above, the Lyrids produced a maximum of about 700 meteors per hour, and in 1922 - 1800 meteors per hour! There were other active years. In April 1884, Denning observed 22 meteors per hour; in 1982, 90-100 meteors were observed per hour.

Many astronomers have tried to calculate the period of increased Lyrid activity, but their attempts have ended in failure. There are likely to be several randomly placed clusters of particles in orbit around Comet Thatcher, which may make it impossible to obtain accurate estimates of such a period. Who knows, maybe this year we will see one of these surges in activity?

Observing the Lyrids on the night of April 22-23, 2015

The Lyrids are not one of the larger showers such as the Geminids or Perseids. As we have already written, even at its maximum the flow produces no more than 15 meteors per hour (=18). Therefore, observing the Lyrids is not easy: you need a lot of patience to notice a white “shooting star” in the sky.

In addition, the Lyrids have a “sharp” peak that is not extended in time. This means that it makes sense to visually observe the flow only in the interval of 2-3 hours before and after the maximum. The rest of the time (the Lyrids are active from April 16 to April 25), the shower produces only a few meteors per hour.

Lyrids are bright white meteors with no trails. The stream is active during the period April 16-25. This photo shows one of the first Lyrids of the year, photographed in England on April 16th. Source: Martin Dawson, York Astronomical Society

In 2015, there will be good conditions for observing the Lyrids. Maximum activity will occur on April 23 around 3 a.m. Moscow time. The moon will go below the horizon at this time and will not interfere with observations.

Where to look?

First of all, you need to find the constellation Lyra - the place in the sky from where the Lyrids “fly out”. The constellation Lyra is small and does not have a bright pattern, but it is easy to find due to the fact that it contains Vega, one of the brightest stars in the sky.

Around midnight, bright Vega is visible high above the eastern horizon. Together with Deneb and Altair, it is part of the Summer Triangle asterism, marking its upper right corner. Drawing: Stellarium

Vega is part of the Great Summer Triangle. Around midnight it can be found in the east at an altitude of about 40° above the horizon, and in the morning - in the southeast, at an altitude of 70° (in mid-latitudes). In the early morning, Vega is the brightest star in this part of the sky. Directly below Vega you can see a small parallelogram of 3-4 magnitude stars. quantities. This is the most expressive part of the Lyra constellation.

The Lyrid radiant is located to the right of Vega and the parallelogram, almost on the border with the constellation Hercules.

Position of the Lyrid radiant in the sky. The flight lines of meteors are shown schematically. Drawing: Stellarium

Now let’s choose a section of the sky where it is easiest to “catch” a falling star, because not all meteors fly away directly from the radiant (remember that this is just the area of ​​the sky from where the Lyrids come to us, that is, the point where the trajectories of the meteors of the stream converge). It is best to sit with your feet facing north and look at a height of about 45° above the horizon. This patch of sky, located between Polaris and the bright yellow star Capella, contains the inconspicuous constellations of the Giraffe and Lynx. To the right is the famous constellation Cassiopeia in the form of the letter W. Having noticed a meteor, mentally trace its path in the opposite direction. If it comes to the constellation Lyra, then the meteor was probably a Lyrid.

In this picture, an oval is drawn around the area of ​​the sky above the northern horizon where the Lyrids are best observed. Drawing: Stellarium

You should not watch the Lyrids while standing. This is very inconvenient: the neck quickly becomes stiff, blood circulation in the head is disrupted and, as a result, vision becomes worse. An excellent option would be a garden or folding chair in which you can watch while reclining. Also, don’t forget to dress for the weather: frosty nights in April are still common!

What should you pay attention to?

Lyrids are fairly fast meteors that leave no traces. The color of the meteors is white, the average brightness according to different sources varies from 2.5 m to 3.3 m, which is comparable to the brilliance of the stars of the Ursa Major bucket. Provided there is a clear sky, you can observe the brightest Lyrids in the city (not in a metropolis!), but it is better, of course, to go to a village or country house, away from street light.

Those who have already observed meteors (Perseids or other meteor showers) may find it interesting to make observations of the Lyrids, which have real scientific value.

Here is a short list of tasks that an astronomy lover can set for himself:

• Plotting meteors on a star chart with subsequent determination of the radiant (for the Lyrids, like other showers, the radiant shifts throughout the entire period of visibility)
• Meteor counting to determine the hour number and subsequent determination of the meteor shower density (in case of multiple meteor counts)
• Observations of meteor trail drift
• Photographic observations to obtain accurate velocities

What is needed for this? First of all, clear skies, good knowledge of the constellations and, of course, a great desire. General meteor observations do not require optical equipment (telescopes, binoculars, etc.), unless, of course, you are into meteor photography. However, there are also special programs for observing telescopic meteors.

It should be borne in mind that such observations should be carried out by experienced observers due to the small and sharp peak of the Lyrids.

Read more about meteor observations in the following books (they can be found on the Russian Internet in electronic form):

1. P. G. Kulikovsky. Handbook for an Astronomy Amateur - M.: Editorial URSS, 2002.
2. Babajanov P. B. Meteors and their observation - M.: Nauka, 1987.
3. Astronomical calendar. Constant part - M.: Nauka, 1981.