Orionid Meteor Shower This October 2021 to Grace the Sky After Draconid Passes By

The Orionid meteor shower will peak this month, shortly after the short-lived Draconids pass through. The Orionids are a medium-intensity shower that may be relatively active at times.

According to the American Meteor Society (AMS), the meteor shower will be active in 2021 between September 26 and November 22, peaking on the night of October 20-21.

Visibility

Meteor showers are celestial phenomena in which many meteors-also known as "shooting stars"-appear in the night sky, seemingly emanating from a single point called the radiant. This radiant is located in the constellation of Orion in the case of the Orionids.

These celestial occurrences occur when the Earth passes through streams of cosmic debris left behind by comets and a few asteroids in their orbits around the sun. The renowned Halley's Comet, which is seen from Earth every 75-76 years, is the source of the debris that creates the Orionids.

When this debris hits the Earth's atmosphere, it burns up quickly, resulting in the light streaks we see in the sky.

Orionids vs Draconids

Unlike the Orionids, which can be viewed from everywhere globally, the Draconids can only be seen from the Northern Hemisphere. In addition, the Draconids are only active between October 6 and 10, according to EarthSky, making the event significantly shorter than other meteor showers.

In addition, unlike most other showers, which are best viewed in the early hours of the morning, the ideal time to watch the Draconids is in the evening after dusk. The Draconids will peak in 2021 on October 8, when the thin waxing crescent moon will not interfere with the spectacle.

In most years, the Draconids only generate a few visible meteors per hour, but it has been responsible for very active displays, including hundreds of meteors in a single hour on rare occasions.

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