(WKBW-TV), Buffalo — They're baaaaaaack! The meteor showers, that is, specifically the Lyrid meteor shower, which always brings an end to the meteor drought that occurs each year between January and mid-April.
The eclipse may have come and gone, but it doesn't mean we shouldn't keep looking up for "heavenly happenings"! 🌠 https://t.co/il28qPLZkS
— Josh Nichols (@wnywxguy) April 14, 2024
The Lyrid meteor shower is one of the oldest meteor showers known. Astronomers in China first recorded their existence in 687 B.C.E., which means, according to NASA, human beings have been seeing these shooting stars for more than 2,700 years!
Typically, the Lyrid meteor shower produces as many as 10 to 20 bright, fast "shooting stars" per hour, but they have been known to produce as many as 100 hour meteors per hour, when the shower is at its most impressive.
So how do you see them? Firstly, dress for the weather. It is STILL April after all in Western New York. Then, it's time to make sure you're in some dark country skies away from the influence of city lights and most light pollution. Allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness, and then simply, look up.
The meteors will appear to originate from the constellation Lyra, and its brightest star Vega. The constellation would be the meteor shower's "radiant".
You can find this constellation looking in a northeasterly direction from where you're standing. Keep in mind that, while the meteor shower's radiant will be from that direction, that the meteors may streak across any portion of the sky.
Unlike the eclipse, which is timed out almost to the second, meteor showers are erratic in their timing and placement, so you need to prepare for being outside for a while, if you want to see them. Typically, your best chance at seeing most any meteor shower is in the middle of the night between Midnight and just before sunrise.
This year, the Lyrids will run from April 15 to April 29, with the peak taking place on the evening of April 21 to the early morning hours of April 22.
There will be more meteor showers in the months to follow. I'll keep you posted as to when they arrive!
In the meantime, keep looking up!
