The so-called “unicorn meteor storm” could be lighting up the night sky tonight as the Earth passes through a field of space debris created by a mysterious comet.
If you want to boost your chances of catching a glimpse of these rare November shooting stars, you should follow these tips, offered by Space.com and other astronomy experts.
- Plan on staying up late. The meteor storm is expected to be at its best at about 11:50 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, according to the American Meteor Society. Astronomy experts at AccuWeather say star gazers should start looking for the meteors at about 11 p.m. and continue looking through midnight.
- Find a dark location, such as a park or a rural area, as far away as possible from bright city lights or street lights. “Try to get to a place that will provide you with a wide-open view of the sky, free from obstructions like tall trees or buildings,” says Space.com “In short: the darker your sky and the more sky you can see, the more meteors you’ll see.”
- Bring a lawn chair or a blanket to rest comfortably and look up into the sky.
- Give your eyes about 30 minutes to adjust to the dark. That will improve your chances of seeing more shooting stars.
- For most of the eastern United States and eastern Canada, the meteors will be shooting fairly low in the sky, so Space.com says to look toward the horizon in the east-southeastern sky.
- In case you’re wondering, you do not need binoculars, telescopes or special glasses to see the meteor shower. Your own set of eyes are all that’s needed.
- You do need clear skies, which is out of your control. As of now, weather forecasters say people in the western and north-central United States have the best shot at seeing the meteor storm, with only patchy clouds expected. Cloudy skies could hamper the view in much of the eastern and southern United States.
AccuWeather
Some experts say the Alpha Monocerotid meteor shower might put on a spectacular sky show Thursday night, bursting into a meteor storm. But viewing conditions might not be ideal in some parts of the United States.
The National Weather Service is calling for mostly cloudy skies in each region of New Jersey Thursday night. Mostly cloudy skies are also forecast for New York City and Philadelphia. Even though that sounds dismal for viewing, there could be some breaks in the clouds.
Could the sky show be a dud?
Not all astronomy experts are expecting a dazzling sky show Thursday night, even in areas with clear skies. Bill Cooke, a meteor expert at NASA, said he thinks “there is a pretty good chance there may be no outburst at all. And even if there is, it won’t be as impressive as many think.”
In a blog post he wrote for the national space agency, Cooke said he was a little skeptical of the media hype surrounding other experts’ predictions that this will be a spectacular meteor storm. He researched the issue, and came up with a few technical reasons why he believes this meteor shower could turn out to be a dud.
Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality or like him on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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November 21, 2019 at 07:00PM
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How to see the rare unicorn meteor storm tonight - NJ.com
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