461 new objects discovered on the edge of our solar system
It increases our knowledge of what floats in the Kuiper belt by a significant margin.
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- The meteor shower, known as the Herculean tau, could be spectacular, or it could be a total mistake.
- If it reaches thousands of meteors per hour, it would be a “meteorite storm.”
- Maximum activity is expected around 1:00 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, May 31 in the morning.
Sky observers could enjoy a memorable spectacle Monday night and early Tuesday morning as Earth traverses the debris of a crumbling comet, leading to a possible meteor shower with thousands of shooting stars. per hour.
Astronomers said the meteor shower, known as the Herculean tau, could be spectacular, or it could be a total mistake.
“This is going to be an all-or-nothing event,” NASA meteorite expert Bill Cooke said in a statement. If it reaches thousands of meteors per hour, it would be a “meteorite storm,” rather than a rain.
There’s “a small chance of something extraordinary, perhaps one of the most spectacular meteor showers since Leonides’ spectacular meteor showers more than 20 years ago, ”Joe Rao of Space.com said.
Maximum activity is expected around 1 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, the Space Meteorological Archive blog said.
The comet is known as 73P / Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 (SW3), the name of the two German astronomers who discovered it in 1930. The comet is breaking into dozens of pieces as it revolves around the sun. every 5.4 years, NASA said. .
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In total, SW 3 has been broken into more than 68 fragments. In its most recent appearance, in March 2017, it showed signs of spilling parts on each return through the inner solar system, Rao said.
If it comes to us this year, the comet’s debris will hit the Earth’s atmosphere at 10 miles per second, which is slow for good meteor showers.
Star watchers will pay attention this year because meteors should be high in the night sky at the scheduled rush hour, NASA said. The higher the radiant point in the sky, the more meteors you are likely to see.
Even better, the moon is new, so there will be no moonlight to clear the weak meteors.
For an ideal view of this or any meteor shower, find a place away from city lights. Your eyes will need to adjust to the darkness, which can take up to 15 to 20 minutes. Watching meteor showers can take some time, so be patient, experts advise. It might be worth the wait!