Brace for impact: Orionid meteor shower is here

Occurring in October each year, the shower appears to be originating near the constellation Orion the Hunter

“The sky will put on a heck of a show tonight,” says CNN describing the Orionid meteor shower, adding, it peaks Friday night — during which one can see 20 meteors per hour — into Saturday morning. But, citing a Nasa expert, space.com says the Orionid meteor shower might have peaked last night, but the fast, bright meteors would continue streaming across the sky in force for another night or two.

So, What is the Orionid meteor shower?

This is how Nasa explains the phenomenon: “A meteor is a space rock or meteoroid that enters Earth’s atmosphere. When Earth encounters many meteoroids at once, we call it a meteor shower. During the shower, the glowing streaks may appear anywhere in the sky, but their “tails” all seem to point back to the same spot in the sky. Meteor showers are named for the constellation where the meteors appear to be coming from. So, for example, the Orionids Meteor Shower, which occurs in October each year, appears to be originating near the constellation Orion the Hunter.”

Space.com informs, viewers all over the world can see them; the meteors appear to emanate from near the constellation Orion, which appears in the southwest sky for Northern Hemisphere dwellers and the northwestern sky for viewers in the Southern Hemisphere. Although not dangerous enough, it advices to avoid looking at the shower directly at that spot, called the shower’s radiant. The website adds, the shower flies at a relative speed of about 148,000 mph (238,000 km/h) and makes an appearance every year in October and November as Earth passes through the trail of debris left behind by Halley’s Comet. Although the comet travels near Earth only once every 75 years, Earth crosses Halley’s trail twice a year — causing the Orionids and May's Eta Aquarids.

CNN says that if you have an unclouded view of the night sky, preferably away from city lights, you'll see beautiful streaks of light zipping overhead. It adds that they’re one of a few major, yearly meteor showers.