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The total solar eclipse has come and gone, but sky watchers have a reason to keep looking up – this week’s meteor shower will peak just before the full moon. The bright orb might steal some of the Lyrids’ thunder, but experts have some tips on how best to watch the celestial spectacle.
The Lyrid Meteor shower will be most active Sunday night into early Monday morning, according to the American Meteor Society. And April’s full moon, also known as the pink moon, reaches the crest of its full phase at 7:49 pm ET on Tuesday.
During the peak of the Lyrids, viewers usually catch a glimpse of up to 18 meteors per hour, but this year the brightness of the moon will obscure the view of faint meteors. The shower will be visible to people in the Northern Hemisphere, said Ashley King, a postdoctoral researcher in planetary sciences at London’s Natural History Museum. It won’t be high enough in the night sky in the Southern Hemisphere to see high meteor rates, he explained, the radiant of the Lyrids, or the point where the meteors appear to have come from.
How to see the Lyrid meteor
Night owls aiming to see the Lyrids will need to adjust their eyes by going outside at least 10 to 15 minutes before trying to see a meteor, King said. Since meteors can be seen across the sky, experts do not recommend using a telescope or binoculars due to the devices’ small fields of view, according to NASA.
“The best time to go out (to see a meteor) is early in the morning before the sun rises,” King said. “If you can be somewhere dark and maybe get up high, so you can see a lot of the sky, that’s ideal.”
The Lyrids aren’t known as the fastest or brightest meteors, but the shower can provide a worthy celestial light show – and there’s always the chance for a surprise.
“You never quite know what you’re going to see, and a meteor is a great way to see what’s going on and see that the solar system is active,” King said. “In a way, (by seeing a meteor) you’re looking at … some of the oldest materials that formed in the solar system.”
Look at the sky for the pink moon
The pink moon will be visible to everyone around the world, as Earth’s natural satellite will appear full for a few days.
Despite its name, this full moon will be like no other, said Paul Hayne, a planetary scientist at the University of Colorado Boulder. Any full moon can occasionally take on a reddish hue when near the horizon, due to light passing through the Earth’s atmosphere.
The pink moon actually got its moniker because of its annual appearance not long after the start of spring, like its name, a hot pink wildflower called Phlox subulata that blooms in early spring, according to Almanac the Old Farmer.
The full moon is best viewed with binoculars, or even the naked eye, as it may be too bright to see through a telescope, Hayne said.
“Our closest celestial neighbor has played a central role in human mythology and the evolution of life on earth. It is also one of the most beautiful sights in the night sky that can be seen without a telescope,” Hayne said in an email. “Looking up at a full moon is a wonderful opportunity to remind us of the vastness of space and our connection to the cosmos.”
More moons this year
Of the 12 full moons in 2024, the September and October lunar events are set to be the best, according to EarthSky.
Definitions of a supermoon can vary, but the term usually refers to a full moon that is closer to Earth than usual and appears larger and brighter in the night sky. Some astronomers say the phenomenon occurs when the moon is within 90% of perigee — the closest approach to Earth’s orbit.
Here are the remaining full moons of 2024:
• May 23: Flower moon
• June 21: Strawberry Moon
• July 21: Buck moon
• August 19: Sturgeon moon
• September 17: Autumn moon
• October 17: Hunter’s moon
• November 15: Beaver Moon
• December 15: Cold moon
Meteor showers of 2024
Skygazers can look forward to many more meteor showers this year, according to the American Meteor Society. Here are the dates when meteor events are expected to peak.
• Eta Aquariids: May 4-5
• Southern delta Aquariids: July 29-30
• Alpha Capricornids: July 30-31
• Perseids: 11-12 August
• Draconids: 7-8 October
• Orions: 20-21 October
• Southern Taurids: November 4-5
• Northern Taurids: November 11-12
• Leonids: November 17-18
• Geminids: 13-14 December
• Ursids: 21-22 December
Solar and lunar eclipses
While the total solar eclipse on April 8 was the most anticipated event in 2024, the annular solar eclipse on October 2 will occur over parts of South America. In this type of eclipse, the moon is at its furthest point from Earth within its orbit as it passes between our planet and the sun, so it cannot completely block the orb of fire. Instead, an annular solar eclipse creates a “ring of fire” in the sky and sunlight around the moon.
Meanwhile, a partial lunar eclipse will be visible across Europe and much of Asia, Africa, North and South America between September 17 and 18. During this event, the Earth moves between the sun and the full moon in almost perfect alignment, creating the Earth’s shadow. to obscure part of the moon’s surface for those in the eclipse path.
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