Stargazers should keep their eyes to the skies in the coming weeks for the chance to see stunning shooting stars and possibly even fireballs as the annual Orionid meteor shower heats up.
The Orionid meteor shower occurs every year in October and is considered to be one of the year’s most beautiful meteor showers. The 2023 Orionid meteor shower kicked off September 26 and will run until November 22, with the greatest number of meteors visible during the shower’s peak on October 21-22, according to the astronomy website EarthSky.
The Orionids result from the Earth passing through the dust and debris wake of Halley’s Comet — an ancient and well-known comet that has been sighted for millenia, according to NASA. Halley’s Comet is also responsible for producing the Eta Aquarids meteor shower every spring.
While typically not as plentiful as the popular summertime Perseids, Orionid meteors are known for being bright, fast and streaky, with lingering light trails that can last for several seconds up to minutes long. The meteor shower is also notorious for producing fireballs: exceptionally bright meteors visible over a large area. (If you spot a fireball, you can report it online via the American Meteor Society.)
The best time to see as many Orionids as possible will be between midnight and dawn on the mornings of October 21 and 22, when the shower may produce a maximum of 10 to 20 meteors per hour. In a stroke of good timing, the moon will be setting around midnight those nights, and therefore its light will not interfere with the meteor shower.
To see the most spectacular meteors, NASA says to gaze at the southeastern sky about 45 to 90 degrees away from the constellation Orion — the namesake for this meteor shower — which will make the meteors appear longer. If you can’t find Orion, use a stargazing app, or just face the southeastern sky and give your eyes about a half-hour to adjust to the darkness. Make sure you’re in a location away from bright urban lights and under the darkest skies possible, dress warmly, and enjoy the show.
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