How to Watch The Draconid Meteor Shower & When To Catch The Most Shooting Stars
The night sky is gonna be lit 💫💫💫
It's never a bad week when you can end it with a meteor shower — especially when it's a super easy one to watch.
The Draconid meteor shower is already underway and it's expected to peak right around dusk on Friday, according to the pros at EarthSky
You can watch the Draconids with the naked eye and you don't need to get up at an ungodly hour or bundle up in the dead of winter to see it.
Just find a comfy spot and watch the northern sky for a while around dusk because the Draconids can be pretty stellar.
You can spot the meteor shower by looking for the Big Dipper in the sky, tracing your eye back to the tip of its "handle" and then tilting your head way back.
Or if you know your constellations, you can see it happening in Draco's head.
Want to see some meteors? October's short-lived Draconid meteor shower - sometimes called the Giacobinids - is expected to peak at nightfall or early evening on October 8, 2021. \n\nFind out more about the Draconids and how to see them: https://bit.ly/3a2FHN0\u00a0pic.twitter.com/Ebkgde0ZDa— EarthSky (@EarthSky) 1633698483
The Draconids occasionally deliver some pretty spectacular meteor showers, although this one is expected to be on the tamer side with five to 10 meteors an hour.
You can see it from most parts of the world but the best areas to watch are in the Northern Hemisphere, in places like Canada and the United States.
The shower is caused by a comet that whips past Earth around the same time each year, dropping little bits of debris (not stars) into the atmosphere to burn up.
Friday is the best night to see the meteor shower but you'll also have a good chance on Saturday if the weather is clear, astronomers say. The whole thing will peter out on Sunday.
And if you miss this shower, don't worry; the Geminids are coming in December, and those usually deliver the best natural fireworks of the year.
You just might need a coat for that one.