The Quadrantid meteor shower, which is one of the strongest glasses in the sky but is sometimes difficult to see, will peak on Saturday night and it is the first meteor shower of 2021.
The annual meteor shower is known for its ‘bright fireball meters’ and is, according to NASA, “considered one of the best annual meteor showers”.
This year, a bright waning moon could make it harder to detect the meteorites, which according to EarthSky usually illuminate a dark night sky. However, it is still worth looking at the sky for a glimpse of the annual light show.
Here’s what you need to know about the 2021 Quadrantid meteor shower:
What causes the Quadrantid meteor shower
The quadrantids are not an ordinary meteor shower. Although most meteor showers are caused by small pieces of debris from a comet that burn up as they enter the Earth’s atmosphere, the quadrants, according to NASA, are probably caused by debris from an asteroid or possible ‘rock comet’.
Those junkyards come in contact with the earth’s atmosphere every year, where it burns up and creates colorful glasses in the night sky.
When to watch
The International Meteorological Organization predicts that the peak will be on January 3 at 14:30 UTC, which means that people in North America have their best chance of seeing the shower during the preceding hours of January 3rd.
While some meteor showers peak for days, the Quadrantids have a window of only a few hours and are known to not always appear right on schedule.
How to observe the quadrants
The quadrants favor those in the Northern Hemisphere. The American Meteor Society recommends that people “face the northeast quadrant of the sky and center your view halfway in the sky.”
“By looking this way in the direction, you can see meteors firing from the radiating direction in all directions. This will make it easy to distinguish between the quadrant and random meteors from other sources,” the group explained in a blog post .
What to expect from the first meteor shower of 2021
This year’s performance may not be as flashy as in recent years due to the moonlight, but according to AccuWeather, as many as 100 meteors per hour can whistle through the sky. However, the outlet reported that people were likely to see only a quarter of the action.
Next year’s dumps are expected to be even better. According to the American Meteor Society, the Quadrant time in 2022 will peak on January 3 at 21:00 UT, with no moon. This timing will benefit an audience of aerial viewers in Asia.