National Astronomical Research Institution of Thailand (NARIT)’s Chief of Academic Services Section Suphareuk Khareuhanon said that the meteor shower will create “shooting stars” best viewed during the peak of the phenomenon, from 2:30am until dawn tomorrow.
“The Quadrantids return from Dec 28 to Jan 12 every year. This year people can see the meteor shower by looking up to the northeast, and it will be seen clearly with the naked eye in very dark areas,” Mr Suphareuk said.
“This year, we expect to see up to 120 shooting stars an hour during the peak. Additionally, tonight will be dark with no moon after midnight, so it will be perfect for stargazing. Those who are interested should be in a very dark areas in order to see the meteor shower with the naked eye.”
The Quadrantids, which peak during early-January each year, are considered to be one of the best annual meteor showers, explains the Nasa website. (See here.)
The meteors come from leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids. The Quadrantids meteors specifically come from an asteroid called 2003 EH1, which takes 5.52 years to orbit the sun.
When these objects come around the sun, the dust they emit gradually spreads into a dusty trail around their orbits. Every year the Earth passes through these debris trails, which allows the bits to collide with our atmosphere where they disintegrate to create fiery and colorful streaks in the sky, the website explains.
“Most meteor showers have a two day peak, which makes catching sight of these other meteors much more possible. The Quadrantids peak, on the other hand, is much shorter – only a few hours… During its peak, 60 to as many as 200 Quadrantid meteors can be seen per hour under perfect conditions,” Nasa experts explain.
Quadrantids are also known for their bright fireball meteors, Nasa notes.
“Fireballs are larger explosions of light and color that can persist longer than an average meteor streak. This is due to the fact that fireballs originate from larger particles of material. Fireballs are also brighter, with magnitudes brighter than -3,” Nasa noted.