Orionids meteor shower to peak October 21st–on Judgment Day

Judgment day comes with a spectacular meteor shower called the Orionids, pieces left over from Halley's Comet.


  ITWire reports the best time to see the shower is between October 17 through the 25th:

The best time in 2011 to see the Orionids will be from October 17 to 25. And, the peak of their observations should be late on the night of Friday, October 21, and continue well into the early morning hours of Saturday, October 22.

A quarter (waning crescent) Moon will be visible in the night sky, so some light will obstruct some of the meteors.

The shower will appear both in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere, so they will be widely seen across the Earth.

To locate the origin (radiant) from where the meteors appear to be coming from, find the elbow in the constellation Orion (Orion the Hunter).

The constellation Orion is found in the southeastern portion of the night sky.

Harold Camping claims the world will end quietly on October 21st–the meteor shower may make people think that the world is ending, but should be spectacular. Here's the science behind it:

When one of the dust particles enters the Earth's atmosphere, it gives off light. In years gone by, the Orinoids light show was spectacular but it expected to be less than stellar on October 21, 2011. Manager of NASA's Near-Earth Object Program Office, Don Yeomans, said a large, waning crescent moon will be in sight as the Orinoids peak.

Yeomans said, “The moon has just decided to wash out the meteor storms this year. They are a subtle phenomena and you really need a dark sky. A bright moon nearby really ruins the show.” Spectators should look to they sky at around 5 a.m. on Friday or Saturday to catch a glimpse.

 

Dakota O'Leary

Dakota O'Leary is a freethinker, and often sassy, scholar of theology and literature. She got her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Theology from the State University of New York College at Buffalo, and her Master of Arts degree in Theology and Literature from Antioch University-Midwest. She is a contributing writer focusing on eschatology, biblical prophecy, and general religious news. Dakota is a co-host of the God Discussion radio show, offering insight to the news stories of the week. We like to call her "our in-house Biblical prophecy expert" as her articles on eschatology have received over 200,000 views on God Discussion.

More Posts - Website - Twitter - Facebook