Two Dazzling Meteor Showers Will Peak Over Canada This Month & You Could See Bright Fireballs
Here's how to watch! 💫
People watch shooting stars. Right: A Leonids meteor.
Look up! Two stunning meteor showers will light up the skies over Canada this month, and you won't want to miss the shows.
The Taurid meteor shower and the Leonids meteor shower will each peak in November, and you can see bright, colourful shooting stars and even fireballs in the sky.
The first meteor shower to peak this month will be the Taurid meteor shower. The Taurids come from dust and debris left behind by Comet Encke, and can be seen throughout November and December.
The Taurid meteor shower actually consists of two streams — the Southern Taurids, which peaked between November 4 and 5, and the Northern Taurids, which peak between November 11 and 12.
While you can still catch the Southern Taurids in the sky, the Northern Taurids will put on the better show when the shower peaks this month.
According to the Farmer's Almanac, while the meteors are the slowest of any of the major annual meteor showers, the Taurids are known to have many bright colors, with yellow, orange, green, red and blue fireballs having been recorded.
According to NASA, the best time to look for Taurid meteors is after midnight, when the constellation Taurus is high in the sky, and when the sky is dark and clear, with no moonlight.
This year should have good viewing conditions, as the moon will only be 2% illuminated, according to Space.com.
The Farmer's Almanac recommends looking to the southern sky until November 13 to catch the meteors.
After the Taurids, another celestial show will light up Canada's skies. The Leonid meteor shower will peak on November 18, offering the chance to see fast-moving, bright shooting stars.
In fact, the Leonids, which come from Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, are considered to be some of the fastest meteors, traveling at speeds of 71 kilometers per second, according to NASA.
The event is considered a major meteor shower, so you won't want to miss out — however, if you do miss the peak, you can still see Leonid meteors in the sky until early December.
To see the Leonids at their peak, it's recommended that viewers look for the shooting stars at about midnight, local time, on November 18, in an area well away from the city or street lights.
NASA also recommends actually looking away from the constellation Leo, where the meteors appear to originate from. They will be visible across the sky, and looking away from the constellation will make the meteors appear "longer and more spectacular."
If you're looking for a place to watch the show, Canada is home to many dark-sky preserves and provincial and national parks perfect for stargazing and viewing the cosmos.
Be sure to keep your eyes on the skies for more celestial events in Canada in 2023, including what's been called one of the Northern Hemisphere’s best meteor showers.
Enjoy!
This article's left-hand cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.