How to watch the Lyrid meteor shower peak on Earth Day

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How to watch the Lyrid meteor shower peak on Earth Day
Sophie Lewis - 8h ago
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One of the oldest known meteor showers is gracing the night sky this week — coinciding with the celebration of our planet known as Earth Day. There hasn't been a meteor shower in months, and the Lyrid shower marks the end of the drought.



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Startrails are seen during the Lyrids meteor shower over Michaelskapelle on April 20, 2020 in Niederhollabrunn, Austria.  / Credit: Thomas Kronsteiner / Getty Images


What are the Lyrids?

The Lyrid meteor shower lights up the night sky every year from around April 15 to 29, as particles shed from Comet 1861 G1 Thatcher. The comet last passed through the inner solar system in 1861 — and it will not return until 2276 due to its 415-year orbit.

There are records of the spectacular light show dating back some 2,700 years, making it as one of the oldest known meteor showers. According to NASA, the Lyrid shower was first recorded in China in 687 BC.

Lyrid meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Lyra the Harp, located near the well-known star Vega, giving the shower its name.

The meteors during this shower are considered medium-fast, zooming into Earth's atmosphere at about 110,000 miles per hour. They are known for their speed and brightness — although viewers should not expect them to be as brilliant as meteors during the famous Perseids shower in August.

Still, about 25% of Lyrid meteors leave a persistent "glowing dust train" that glows for several seconds after they have already passed — creating beautiful shooting stars.

It's possible for the Lyrid shower to feature spectacular outbursts of 100 meteors per hour. Heavy showers occurred in Greece in 1922, Japan in 1945 and the U.S. in 1982.

But in a normal year, a viewer can expect to see 10-20 meteors per hour in the Northern hemisphere and 1-2 per hour in the Southern Hemisphere, under normal weather conditions.


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