The Camelopardalids meteor shower could be one of the greatest displays of shooting stars seen in years. This is a brand-new meteor shower, never before seen by the human race. The event is peaking on May 23, and could continue for a few days following.
The meteor shower can be seen across almost all of North America and Central America, anywhere free of clouds and excess light pollution. NASA expects best viewing between 10:30 p.m. May 23 to 7 a.m. on May 24, with peak on May 24 between 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. EDT.
Meteor showers are caused when the Earth, traveling around its orbit, passes into the debris field left behind by a passing comet. The body responsible for this event is comet 209P/LINEAR.
"Comet 209P/LINEAR is a Jupiter-family comet discovered by the Lincoln Laboratory Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project in 2004. While orbiting, the closest it comes to the sun is 0.9 AU (84 million miles) and the farthest it gets from the sun is about 5 AU (465 million miles), close to Jupiter's orbit," NASA journalists wrote on the space agency Web site.
On May 29, the comet will approach within 3.7 million miles of the Earth. This is roughly 1/25th the distance between our home world and the sun. This is a close call in astronomical terms, but there is no chance the body will collide with the Earth.
Most predictions are calling for close to 200 shooting stars per hour, with little to no chance for a full-fledged meteor storm. However, observations say the comet is currently giving off little gas or dust. There is no way of telling how the comet acted in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the debris trail causing this year's event was created.
Like many astronomical events, there are many questions that remain about the shower. It could rival the best of the annual meteor showers, or it could put on a lackluster performance.
"Some forecasters have predicted a meteor storm of more than 200 meteors per hour. We have no idea what the comet was doing in the 1800s. The parent comet doesn't appear to be very active now, so there could be a great show, or there could be little activity," Bill Cooke, head of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office, said.
Observers wishing to view the meteor show should go outside, either after midnight, or just before dawn, when viewing will be best. Areas with low horizons to the East and Southeast will allow observation of the greatest number of shooting stars.
Skywatchers should remember to dress appropriately for nighttime conditions in their area. Neither binoculars nor a telescope are required, just a simple dark, empty field, a comfortable place to sit and a supply of food and drinks.
