It’s May and it’s hot (in the northern hemisphere). At a time like this, the Eta Aquarid meteor shower is a great excuse to look up. the night sky.
This year’s shower peaks near the new moon – the opposite of a full moon – which is ideal. Dark skies mean better viewing conditions, which will be a relief to anyone who attempted to witness this spectacle last year, when a dazzling full moon filled the sky with light, making viewing meteors almost impossible. These conditions also contrast nicely with last month’s Lyrid meteor shower, during which a nearly full waxing gibbous moon could have ruined your attempt to make a wish on a shooting star.
When to watch the Eta Aquarids in 2024
The Eta Aquarids produce a long show, with activity from April 15 to May 27 this year. However, if you only look up once, plan to do so during the show’s peak activity period on the night of May 4, as well as during in the early morning hours of May 5. In theory, 2 a.m. local time is the absolute best time (due to factors we’ll cover below), but meteors don’t follow the rules, so the hours between 2 a.m. and dawn will certainly be exciting as well.
Past experience with this shower indicates that Eta Aquarids come in bursts. This means that if you look up during a lull, you might think you missed the show. But wait a little, and there will be no more ambiguity; these are fast-moving meteors, and you’ll usually know by the pace of the action that you’re seeing the Eta Aquarids. Patience will be rewarded.
How can I see the Eta Aquarids?
Since most of Mashable’s readers are in the Northern Hemisphere, the unfortunate answer to this question is: for best results, change hemisphere. Stargazers in the Southern Hemisphere are lucky to see a show of 50 meteors per hour (assuming conditions are ideal), while Northerners can only hope to see 10 to 30 per hour . Honestly, though, 10-30 is still good.
Crushable speed of light
Find an area of dark sky located above an area away from towns and villages. A clear view is best, so if you’re reading this from the bottom of a well, catching a meteor shower is going to be a challenge. Make yourself confortable. Stay warm. Preserve your night vision by not looking at your phone.
By the way, what are Eta Aquarids?
The Eta Aquarids get their name from their radiant point which is, simply put, the place in the sky where meteors come from. The Eta Aquarids are native to the constellation Aquarius, so timing your meteor viewing involves waiting for Aquarius to rise above the horizon (which is why wait until 2 a.m. local time , is your best bet). But Aquarius is a collection of stars located light years away, and the meteors themselves are only 31 miles away when we see them burning in our atmosphere.
Generally speaking, meteor showers are the result of Earth passing through a comet trail made up of tiny particles of dust and ice. The Eta Aquarids have a famous parent: the Michael Jordan of space rocks, Halley’s Comet. The solar system’s most famous comet won’t visit Earth for decades, but this shower is our annual encounter with the lingering evidence of its existence.
Can apps help me find Eta Aquarids?
Stargazing apps like Sky Safari are highly recommended for general stargazing, but they aren’t very useful during meteor showers. An app can make finding Aquarius easier, but the bright screen will make the meteors harder to see, and they travel across the entire sky anyway, rather than clustering around their radiating point.
The best advice is this: just look up and wait.
