Quadrantid meteor shower: January’s first celestial event

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The new year kicks off with Quadrantids, one of 12 annual events. Meteor shower.

The celestial event is typically one of the strongest meteor showers, expected to peak on the night of January 3 and 4, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. American Meteor SocietyNorthern hemisphere stargazers can best see the shower between midnight Tuesday and dawn Wednesday.

However, the shower peak is short, only 6 hours, and is notoriously difficult to observe in the northern hemisphere due to frequent bad weather in January. A bright near-full moon will make the quadrant even harder to see this year.

Moonset occurs just before dawn, providing a very small window for finding the shower against the dark sky.

The forecast range for the peak showers is 10:40 PM to 1:40 AM (3:40 AM to 6:40 AM GMT). Late hours favor observers in eastern North America, and early hours favor observers across Europe. The quadrant is not visible in the southern hemisphere because the radiant point of the shower does not rise very high in the sky before dawn.

check Time and Date site See what your chances of viewing an event are like, or head out and see for yourself.of virtual telescope project A live stream of the shower over Rome is also planned.

You can usually see 50-100 meteors per hour, but peak hours can be up to 120 meteors per hour, especially in rural areas.

Look at the northeast sky and look up in the middle. You might even catch a glimpse of some fireballs during a meteor shower. The American Meteor Society advises looking at the sky for at least an hour.

If you live in an urban area, it’s a good idea to drive to an area where there are not many city lights. If you can find a spot unaffected by light pollution, meteors can be seen every few minutes from dusk to dawn.

Find an open area with a wide view of the sky. Make sure you have a chair or blanket so you can look straight up. Allowing your eyes to adapt to the darkness for 20-30 minutes without looking at your phone can help you spot meteors.

If the name of the meteor shower sounds strange, it’s probably because it doesn’t sound related to a constellation like other meteor showers. At least not as a recognized constellation.

The constellation Quadrans Muralis, first noted in 1795 between Taurus and Draco, is considered obsolete and is no longer in use as a constellation today, so it is not included in the International Astronomical Union’s list of modern constellations. not Celestial Navigation Landmark According to earth sky.

like Gemini meteor shower, Quadrantid comes from a mysterious asteroid or “rock comet” rather than a rare ice comet. This particular asteroid is 2003 EH1 and it takes 5.52 years for her one orbit around the Sun. The shower peak is short because only a small stream of particles interacts with the atmosphere and the stream occurs at a vertical angle. Every year, the earth passes this debris her trail for a short time.

In addition to the meteor shower, a recently discovered comet will soon appear in the January night sky.

Discovered in March 2022, the comet will make its closest approach to the Sun on January 12. NASADiscovered by astronomers using the Zwicky Transient Facility at Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, the comet has been named C/2022 E3 (ZTF) and will make its closest approach to Earth on February 2.

According to NASA, the comet should be visible in the morning skies for northern hemisphere skywatchers for most of January and in binoculars for southern hemisphere skywatchers in early February.

Interactive: Best Space Photos of 2022

Here are the rest of the Top Sky events for 2023: Get your binoculars and telescope ready.

Mark the next peak day on your calendar Other showers to watch 2023:

In most years there are 12 full moons, one in each month. However, in 2023 he will have 13 full moons, two of which will occur in his August.

The second full moon in a month is known as a blue moon, as in the phrase “once in a blue moon.” NASAA full moon usually occurs every 29 days, but most calendar months last 30 or 31 days, so the moon and lunar phases don’t always coincide. This causes a blue moon approximately every 2.5 years.

The two full moons in August can also be considered supermoons. earth sky. Definitions of supermoons varybut the term generally refers to the full moon, which appears larger in the night sky because it is brighter than usual and closer to Earth.

Some astronomers say this phenomenon occurs when the Moon is within 90% of perigee. By that definition, the July full moon is also considered a supermoon event. earth sky.

Here is a list of full moons for 2023. Farmer’s Almanac:

These are common names associated with the monthly full moon, Each has its own significance across Native American tribes (often referred to by different names).

there will be 2 solar eclipses and 2 lunar eclipses 2023.

a A total solar eclipse will occur on April 20, Australians, New Zealanders, Southeast Asians and Antarctic peoples. This kind of event occurs when the moon moves between the sun and the earth and blocks the sun.

And for stargazers in Indonesia, parts of Australia, and Papua New Guinea, it will actually be a hybrid eclipse. The curvature of the Earth’s surface can cause some eclipses to shift between total and annular eclipses as the Moon’s shadow moves across the Earth. NASA.

Like a total solar eclipse, the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth during an annular eclipse, but it occurs when the Moon is at or near its furthest point from Earth, according to NASA. This makes the moon appear smaller than the sun, so the stars are not completely blocked, creating a glowing ring around the moon.

An annular solar eclipse sweeping the Western Hemisphere will occur on October 14, found in the Americas.

Be sure to wear suitable eclipse glasses to view the eclipse safely, as the sun’s rays can damage your eyes.

on the other hand, lunar eclipse It can only occur during a full moon when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are aligned and the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow. When this occurs, the Earth casts two shadows of her on the Moon during a solar eclipse. A partial outer shadow is called a penumbra. A perfect dark shadow is umbra.

When the full moon enters the shadow of the Earth, it darkens, but never disappears. Instead, sunlight passing through Earth’s atmosphere illuminates the Moon in dramatic ways, making it red. For this reason, the event is often called the “blood moon”.

Depending on the weather conditions in your area, it may be rust red or brick red. This occurs because blue light undergoes stronger atmospheric scattering, so when sunlight passes through the atmosphere and is projected onto the Moon, red light becomes the most dominant color.

a A penumbral lunar eclipse will occur on May 5th For people in Africa, Asia and Australia. This less dramatic version of the lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the penumbra, or the faint outer portion of the Earth’s shadow.

a Partial lunar eclipse of the Hunter’s Moon on October 28 It can be seen by people in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, parts of North America, and most of South America. A partial solar eclipse occurs when the Sun, Earth, and Moon are not perfectly aligned, so only part of the Moon is in shadow.