Two meteor showers will light up the skies on July 30. You can expect to see about 25 meteors an hour for most of the world, depending where you are (American Meteor Society).
Alpha Capricornids and Southern Delta Aquariids Meteor Showers Peak Together.
Nicholas Moskowitz, a planetary astronomer at Arizona’s Lowell Observatory, told Parami News: “It’s just an amazing coincidence.”
According to Live Science, this situation is uncommon in that two peaks of meteor shower occur within twenty four hours. However, seeing several showers in one night is something that happens many times.
Where and when
Earth travels through the debris left by the comet as it passes through its orbit around the sun Earth intersects with the comets path, causing fragments of rock from comets to enter earths atmosphere. The southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower will peak between July 29th and July 30th when Earth crosses through comet 96P/Machholz’s orbit It is expected that Alpha Capricornid meteor shower will be visible starting from July 30th until August 7th and cross over comet 169P/NEAT during its perihelion passage on July 31st.
Wednesday night was identified by Robert Lunsford of American Meteor Society as the best time for observing both showers. As moon loses approximately 8% brightness each night while waning, this may affect visibility of less bright meteors. On Monday, according to data the moon is about thirty-four percent full and sixteen percent on Wednesday NASA’s Daily Moon Guide.
Ideal conditions for watching
The best place to watch both showers simultaneously is in the Southern Hemisphere where the radiant point or point of origin for these showers lies almost overhead However those who live in northern hemisphere can also see Delta Aquariids if they have an unobstructed view toward south Both these two meteor showers will continue until mid-August.
“Almost all meteor showers peak between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m.” Moskowitz said. “So if you want to catch any of them, your best chance of seeing the meteors is to get to a dark spot and shoot under Take place after midnight.”
Tips for viewing
Both meteor showers look best with eyes only. Otherwise, it would be good to spend $50 for a new pair telescope or an improved backyard telescope.
Some science behind meteor showers
Because meteor showers are predictable orbits around the sun, they happen on regular basis. The intensity of these meteor showers varies from year to year, affected by the timing of when the comet releases its debris and how long the debris remains in space. Meteor Shower Predictions Are Critical For Spacecraft And Astronaut Safety Lowell Observatory All-Sky Meteor Surveillance Camera (LO-CAMS) headed by Moskowitz provides data about meteors flying through Earth’s atmosphere but also predicts what might hit spacecrafts or humans orbiting above Earth’s surface.
Southern Delta Aquariids and Alpha Capricornid meteor showers
At its height, Southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower will produce between 20 to 25 meteors per hour while the “background” meteor shower usually produces about 5 meteors per hour. Moskowitz said that the Southern Delta Aquarids Meteor Shower is going to be “rather weak.” “One should really be in a dark place far from city lights and traffic, and away from your phone as well, let your eyes adjust to the dark and you might glimpse some faint things.”
Contrary to this, Alpha Capricornid meteor shower is less often but it often produces “bright fireballs wherein larger pieces of debris enter, burn up and get brighter hence making a more spectacular show,” explains Moskovitz. These bright meteors are composed of particles the size of marbles while fainter ones are typically as small as grains of sand.
