{"id":781691,"date":"2024-05-01T18:22:54","date_gmt":"2024-05-01T23:22:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=781691"},"modified":"2024-05-01T18:22:54","modified_gmt":"2024-05-01T23:22:54","slug":"eta-aquariid-meteors-are-richer-from-the-southern-hemisphere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=781691","title":{"rendered":"Eta Aquariid meteors are richer from the Southern Hemisphere"},"content":{"rendered":"


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The radiant point of the Eta Aquariid meteor shower is near the star Eta Aquarii in the constellation Aquarius the Water Bearer. The radiant, where meteors appear to stream from, rises in the wee hours after midnight and is still climbing toward its highest point at dawn. That highest point is in the south as viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, and closer to overhead for the Southern Hemisphere. That\u2019s why the Southern Hemisphere sees more meteors (the radiant is higher up), and it\u2019s why \u2013 for all of us around the globe \u2013 the hours before dawn are best for this shower.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The famous Eta Aquariid meteor shower \u2013 one of the year\u2019s major meteor showers \u2013 peaks every year in early May. In 2024, the peak centers around May 5 and 6. You will probably see more meteors from Earth\u2019s Southern Hemisphere than Northern Hemisphere. Why?<\/p>\n

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Eta aquariid meteors stream from the constellation Aquarius<\/h3>\n

If you traced the paths of Eta Aquariid meteors backward on the sky\u2019s dome, you\u2019d find that these meteors appear to stream from an asterism, or recognizable pattern of stars, known as the Water Jar in the constellation Aquarius the Water Bearer. See chart at the top of this post.<\/p>\n

This spot in the sky is the radiant point of the Eta Aquariid meteor shower. The meteors seem to emanate from the vicinity of the Water Jar, before spreading out and appearing in all parts of the sky.<\/p>\n

Water Jar rises about the same time worldwide<\/h3>\n

Because the Water Jar is on the celestial equator \u2013 an imaginary great circle directly above the Earth\u2019s equator \u2013 the radiant of the Eta Aquariid shower rises due east as seen from all over the world. Moreover, the radiant rises at about the same time worldwide, around 1:40 a.m. local time (2:40 a.m. daylight-saving-time) in early May, around the shower\u2019s typical peak date.<\/p>\n

So you\u2019d think the shower would be about the same as seen from around the globe. But it\u2019s not. <\/p>\n

The sun rises later in the Southern Hemisphere<\/h3>\n

The reason it\u2019s not is that sunrise comes later to the Southern Hemisphere (where it\u2019s autumn in May) and earlier to the Northern Hemisphere (where it\u2019s spring in May). <\/p>\n

A later sunrise means more dark time to watch meteors. And it also means the radiant point of the Eta Aquariid shower has a chance to climb higher into the predawn sky as seen from more southerly latitudes. That\u2019s why the tropics and southern temperate latitudes tend to see more Eta Aquariid meteors than we do at mid-northern latitudes. <\/p>\n

Cruise to a southerly latitude, anyone?<\/p>\n

Everything you need to know: Eta Aquariid meteor shower<\/p>\n

Do you still have questions?<\/h3>\n

EarthSky\u2019s Deborah Byrd and Kelly Kizer Whitt took some time yesterday to chat about questions from our readers and viewers about this meteor shower. Eta Aquariid Q and A here!<\/p>\n