Next to an Super moon and warming spring air, April comes with reports of space rocks. Starting April 16, Earth will traverse the tail of Comet C / 1861 G1 Thatcher, which will see the Lyrid meteor shower shoot across the night sky. Of course, this is not the same as looking up to see the threatening moon hovering above us, but more of an exercise in patience, as meteors are much more volatile than other celestial phenomena.
Here’s what you need to know about the Lyrids and how to watch them later this month.
What are the Lyrids?
The Lyrids take their name from the constellation Lyra, which ‘is associated with the myth of the Greek musician and poet Orpheus’, according to Constellation Guide. The constellation hangs in the northern sky just below the star Vega, which is visible in the summer sky together with the stars Deneb and Altair form an ‘asterism known as the Summer Triangle’, Space.com notes
The Lyrids are a welcome sight for meteor hunters who are starved by their favorite heavenly sights from January to mid-April. But ein April, as Earth passes through the debris left by the tail of the C / 1861 G1 Thatcher, the Lyrids race through the air.
Per EarthSky, the Lyrids are an annual event that is usually active for about nine days. This year, the peak is expected to occur on or around April 19. Here’s how the experts elaborate:
The Lyrids are active from about April 16-25 every year. In 2021, we expect the shower to start late at night on Monday, April 19, likely peaking in the early morning hours on Thursday, April 22. The next morning (April 23) might be fine too, if you’re game.
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In general, the meteors will be active in this period between moonset and sunrise.
A handy tip: find the radiant point
The Lyrids will whet your appetite for meteors, but only just. They aren’t exactly a frenzy, as they usually only show up in streams of about 10 to 15 per hour. (Occasionally they can overwhelm parts of the sky in batches of about 100 an hour, but one thing is particular).
One way to make sure you actually catch the Lyrids is to locate Vega, the brilliant star that illuminates the path of the meteors at their peak. According to EarthSky, it’s all about when the radiant point – in this case Vega – rises. You can find Vega if you look northeast at night for a bright, bluish star above the northeast horizon. ‘When it comes to people in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s usually between nine and 10 p.m. local time. If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, your chance of seeing the top-level show depends on how early you get up (or what time you stay up).
As Earth Sky explains:
Because the point of radiation of this shower is so far north on the dome of the sky, the star Vega only rises in the hours before sunrise, for you. It will be lower in the sky for you than it is for us further north on the globe when dawn breaks. Therefore, you will see fewer Lyrid meteors. Still, you might see something!
The same protocol applies when it comes to creating your own best conditions for catching the meteors. Avoid light pollution, look up to the north, and welcome the first blazing space rocks of 2021.