Lyrid Meteor Showers

 Excerpts
Few things compare to the beauty of a night sky crisscrossed with the bright lights of a meteor shower. Every April, the Lyrid meteor shower dazzles viewers with a spectacle of fast, bright meteors that leave behind glowing dust trains.

 The Lyrid meteors are debris left in the wake of Comet Thatcher, which orbits the sun once every 415 years. They’re among the oldest known meteor showers, with the first recorded observations dating back to 687 B.C. The Lyrid meteor shower is active during the same time frame every year, from April 16 to April 25. You might be able to view meteors any night during those dates, but the peak action day for 2018 is April 22, with an estimated 18 meteors per hour.

  This meteor shower gets its name because it appears to originate in the Lyra constellation near the star Vega, one of the sky’s brightest stars and visible in the east. Vega appears on the horizon at 10 p.m. local time and then reaches its highest point just before dawn. Once you’ve found Vega, don’t focus your gaze there, but instead scan the sky surrounding it. This increases the chance that you’ll spot the meteors with the longest tails.

  Bring a blanket or sleeping bag with you so you can lie flat on the ground, and situate your feet so they are pointing east. This puts you in the best position to spot the meteors as they soar through the sky.

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