Look Up: The Draconid Meteor Shower Will Peak This Weekend—Here's How to See It
The Draconid meteor shower, which peaks on October 8 and 9, will be visible starting tonight.
Look into the night sky starting tonight and see a truly spectacular sight—the Draconid meteor shower. The celestial event comes into view this evening and is expected to peak around October 8 and October 9, according to EarthSky.org.
The Draconids are caused by Earth passing through debris left behind by Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, which passes Earth once every 6.6 years, according to NASA. The stream of debris results in the Draconid meteor shower, which takes place every year in early October.
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Most years, the shower is weak and produces very few meteors. But sometimes, there are Draconid meteor storms, which is when 1,000 or more meteors are seen per hour. In 1933, during the shower's peak, 500 Draconid meteors were seen per minute in Europe, NASA reports. In 1946 50 to 100 meteors were seen per minute in the U.S.
This year will provide optimal viewing conditions for spotting the Draconids. According to EarthSky.org, the best time to watch the Draconids in 2023 is during the evening of October 8 through the early morning hours on October 9. There will be a waning crescent moon that's just 23 percent illuminated, so it will not interfere with most of the shooting stars.
While the Draconids are certainly exciting, they're not the only spectacular celestial event taking place this month. On October 14, a rare annular solar eclipse will be visible in the U.S. for the first time in 11 years. The eclipse will pass through eight states before traveling to Central America and South America.
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