Eta Aquariids Meteor Shower Sighting In South Africa 2020

As the sky and the wonders surrounding it’s existence which is possibly beyond our imagination tries to show its on April 5th and 6th 2020, the world awaits once in a lifetime movements of earthly bodies called the Eta Aquarids, it will peak on the night between 5–6 May and how many people are ready to sight this wonderful displays of God’s wonderful creation.

What Is Eta Aquariids Meteor Shower

The shower is named after the brightest star of the constellation, Eta Aquarii one of two meteor showers created by debris from Comet Halley. The Earth passes through Halley’s path around the Sun a second time in October. This creates the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks around October 20.

Eta Aquariids meteor streams are groups of meteoroids originating from dust grains ejected from Comet 1P Halley.

These small dust grains called(meteoroids) are distributed along the parent comet’s orbit concentrated close to the comet nucleus with fewer grains farther away from the nucleus. Every time the Earth passes through this stream of dust particles (i.e. meteor stream),

we experience what is known as a eta Aquariids meteor shower. These brief streaks of light from meteors, sometimes called “shooting stars”,

So those in South Africa will see the peak on Tuesday night the 5th May 2020 when earth moves through the center of the dust trail left behind by the comet.

Many of the meteor showers throughout the year are caused by debris left behind by comets when they visit the inner solar system. When this debris enters the Earth’s atmosphere, it burns incredibly bright for a few brief seconds.

“The majority of visible meteors are caused by particles ranging in size from about that of a small pebble down to a grain of sand, and generally weigh less than 1-2 grams,” the AMS said.

The debris that causes the Eta Aquarids is actually dust left behind by one of the most famous comets — Halley’s Comet.

How to view the eta Aquariids on May 5th 2020

Go outside, find a dark spot and look east near the constellation of Aquarius for the eta Aquariids radiant. Meteor showers are strictly for night owls or early risers. The best time to view the eta Aquariids is from around 3h00 in the early morning to about 5h 30 min when dawn breaks.

The Eta Aquarids are meteors created by bits of left over material from Halley’s Comet as it travels through the solar system on its 76 year orbit.

They are fast and bright with many long glowing persistent trains. You should be able to see 40 streaks an hour or more during the peak. The eta Aquariids meteor shower is active from the 19th Apr to 28th May with fewer activity either side of the peak time.