The Taurids meteor shower is expected to peak this weekend. Here's how to watch bright fireballs dazzle the night sky.
- The Northern Taurids meteor shower will be at its best overnight, between November 11 and 12.
- Meteor showers happen when Earth passes through the path of a comet.
Keep an eye on the sky this weekend as the fireball-laden Northern Taurids meteor shower approaches its peak, giving you the best chance to catch a shooting star.
In the Southern Hemisphere, the meteor shower reached another peak in mid-October.
This year we could also encounter a Taurids "swarm," or an uptick in meteors. Every seven years, Earth passes through a dense pocket of comet debris. The Southern and Northern Taurids' last peaks were in 2015.
All meteor showers, including the Taurids, happen when Earth passes through the path of a comet or asteroid as it circles the sun. Patches of comet debris called meteors, widely referred to as shooting stars, create fiery streaks of light in the night sky as they burn up in Earth's atmosphere.
The Taurids are a long-lasting meteor shower that peak as the Earth passes through two separate streams of pebble-sized fragments left by Comet Encke, which was discovered by Pierre F. A. Mechain in 1786. Debris from Comet Encke hits Earth's atmosphere at 65,000 mph, according to NASA.
In 2005, a Taurids meteor struck the surface of the moon. The lunar impact was captured by Earth-based telescopes, according to NASA.
How to catch bright fireballs lighting up the night sky this weekendThe Northern Taurids will be at their best overnight on Friday, November 11 and Saturday, November 12 in the Northern Hemisphere, according to Earthsky. From Earth's perspective, the Taurids appear to emanate from the constellation Taurus.
To maximize your meteor shower-viewing experience, find a spot with little light pollution, far away from the city and artificial lights. You are more likely to catch a fireball around midnight, when Taurus is high in the sky.
During the peak, the American Meteor Society says you might see around five meteors per hour under clear, dark skies. While a nearly full moon might wash out the more fleeting Taurids shooting stars, you might still spot a few bright fireballs.