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Things Are Looking Up: Catch the Quadrantids Meteor Shower Tonight
Tonight is a great night to look up at the sky, because you're likely to catch a glimpse of the annual Quadrantids meteor shower. "This annual shower has one of the highest predicted hourly rates of all the major showers," explains Spacedex. Bonus: The Quadrantids are known for producing fireballs--meteors that are "exceptionally bright."
As a bit of a bummer, though, is the fact that this year the Quadrantids coincide with a 72% full moon, which means the moonlight will reduce visibility. In California, peak viewing times will be between 9:00pm and 4:30 am local time. NASA says we're in for a "brief, beautiful show."
"On average, and under clear skies, observers should see 40 to 70 meteors per hour," notes Spacedex. Better yet, if you can swing it, head to more ideal conditions, which Spacedex says means "no cloud cover, precipitation, city lights, and no moonlight," for an even better vista. (Just don't do like one local man did when the Geminid meteor shower was taking place, and drive yourself off a mountain road.)
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