One of the Best Meteor Showers of the Year Quadrantids Coming January 2-3

© Sputnik / Vitaly Timkiv / Go to the mediabankStarlit sky during the Perseid meteor shower observed in Russia's Krasnodar region.
Starlit sky during the Perseid meteor shower observed in Russia's Krasnodar region.  - Sputnik International, 1920, 31.12.2022
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The next significant meteor shower will be the Lyrids, which will take place in mid to late April, peaking between April 22 and 23.
The annual Quadrantids meteor shower is already underway, it started on December 26, but it is set to reach its peak early next year - January 2 and 3 to be exact.
Obviously, the Quadrantids will be the first meteor shower of 2023, but it will also be one of the year’s most vibrant. From the evening of January 2 into the early hours of January 3, viewers can expect to see an average of 80 so-called “shooting stars” in the night sky per hour, though it could peak at up to 200 per hour.
The Quadrantids meteor shower is known to cause long fire trails brighter than typical shooting stars seen in the night sky.
The show is the result of the debris trail of asteroid 2003 EH1, which was discovered in 2003 by the Lowell Observatory Near-Earth-Object Search. It is believed that 2003 EH1 is either a dead comet, meaning its gasses and ice have evaporated turning it into an asteroid, or a piece of another comet which then died.
While its origin was not discovered until this century, the Quadrantids meteor shower was first observed and documented in the 1820s.
To watch the show, viewers should find a place with as little light pollution as possible and lay on their backs to see as much of the sky as their eyes will allow. According to NASA, the place to look is towards the northeast, between the handle of the big dipper and the scoop of the little dipper. While the meteors will travel across the sky, most will seem to originate from that point.
The moon will be 90% full at the time, which will likely obscure the visibility of some of the meteor showers. Therefore, the best time to watch will be when the moon is in the process of setting. Depending on where you live, that time could vary, but the Quadrantids should be a good show regardless.
Binoculars and telescopes are said not to help you observe the event. Viewers will likely have more success using their eyes, which are more than capable of seeing the display, to observe as much of the sky as they can.
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