Watch For Fireballs As Orionid Meteor Shower Peaks In Wisconsin

WISCONSIN — If meteor showers are your thing, this weekend may be a great chance to catch a glimpse of the Orionid meteor shower as it comes down from its Friday morning peak.

That’s weather permitting, of course, but this weekend may have some prime weather for skywatching. A sunny day is expected to last into Friday evening with mostly clear skies and relatively warm weather overnights until Sunday, when rain becomes a possibility.

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The thin, crescent moon will leave mostly dark skies for the peak, when about 20 shooting stars an hour fly in typical years. The meteors are fast-moving and occasionally produce bright fireballs and leave persistent trains.

Named because meteors radiate from the same area of the sky as the Orion constellation, the Orionids are produced by debris from the famous Halley’s Comet.

The hours between midnight and dawn are the best time to see the Orionids. Take along a camera. Report a fireball — a very bright meteor — to the American Meteor Society.

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The Orionid meteor shower, which started Sunday and continues through Nov. 7, intersecting with the long-running Taurid meteor showers that rambles along through late summer and most of the fall. The Taurids are actually two separate meteor showers coming from two separate streams — the first created by grain dust left behind by Asteroid 2004/TG10, and the second by debris left behind by Comet 2P/Encke. It runs through Dec. 10.

The best times to see Taurids are late October and early November, when the two streams overlap. The South Taurids peak around Nov. 5; the North Taurids peak around Nov. 12.

Occasionally, the Taurids create a “swarm” with numerous bright fireballs. The last one was in 2015. In normal years, though, they produce about five or 10 shooting stars an hour. Like most meteor showers, this is best viewed after midnight.

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