Nature

Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight. Here’s How to See It.

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Tony Maples Photography

 

We’re currently in the middle of a meteor shower that’s expected to peak this week. The annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower is usually active between April 22 and May 20. On most nights, viewers can expect rates approaching 30 meteors per hour. This year, it will peak before dawn on May 6.

During the peak, rates could exceed 50 meteors per hour.
texas meteor fireball jason weingart
Photo: Jason Weingart

You don’t need a telescope or binoculars to view the meteors but getting further away from city lights will help you see more of them.

Viewers in Texas should look at the skies toward the southern horizon. The meteors will radiate from Eta Aquarii, located in the constellation Aquarius. According to Space.com, people living near the equator, or even as far north as the southern United States will get the best views of the shower.

Meteor showers occur when dust grains enter the Earth’s atmosphere and burn up.
texas meteor fireball jason weingart
Photo: Jason Weingart

The Eta Aquarids is one of two meteor showers created by debris from Halley’s Comet. Earth will pass through Halley’s path a second time in October. This will create the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks around October 20. Halley’s Comet takes around 76 years to make a complete orbit around the Sun. It will be visible from Earth again in 2061.