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\n The cosmos is set to put on a show later this week when a celestial event reaches its peak.\n <\/p>\n
The Eta Aquariid meteor shower will reach its crescendo between midnight and dawn on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
British stargazers will have the best chance of witnessing the shower closer to dawn at locations removed from streetlamp and other light pollution.<\/p>\n
Eta Aquariid is active between 19 April and 28 May this year, according to Royal Museums Greenwich (RMG).<\/p>\n
The astronomical event is associated with Halley’s Comet, which passes by Earth about every 76 years on its trip around the sun.<\/p>\n
What is a meteor shower?<\/p>\n
Meteor showers occur when the Earth moves through trails of debris left behind by comets or asteroids every time they come close to the sun.<\/p>\n
These fragments collide with the Earth’s atmosphere at extremely high speeds of up to 43 miles (70km) per second, producing streaks of light as they vaporise.<\/p>\n
We call these meteors or shooting stars.<\/p>\n
The Eta Aquariids shower is one of two created by debris from Halley’s Comet, which last visited the inner solar system in 1986.<\/p>\n
The other phenomenon is the Orionid meteor shower which comes in October.<\/p>\n
The “beautiful streaks” appearing in the sky can be caused by particles as small as a grain of sand, the RMG said.<\/p>\n
While on any given night a spattering of meteors can be seen, meteor showers offer a more exciting spectacle.<\/p>\n
How can I see Eta Aquariids?<\/p>\n
The meteor shower will be most visible in the UK in the early pre-dawn hours on Wednesday in the eastern sky.<\/p>\n
This is because the shower favours the Southern Hemisphere, meaning it will appear low in the sky.<\/p>\n
However, this year a bright waning gibbous moon on Wednesday will result in less favourable viewing conditions.<\/p>\n
Despite this, some meteors are still likely to be seen in the early hours of the morning.<\/p>\n
As the moon rises just after midnight, conditions will also be favourable before then.<\/p>\n
Experts caution meteor spotting is a waiting game, so celestial enthusiasts are advised to bring a comfy chair and rug up.<\/p>\n
“Hunting for meteors, like the rest of astronomy, is a waiting game, so it’s best to bring a comfy chair to sit on and to wrap up warm as you could be outside for a while,” RMG said.<\/p>\n
“They can be seen with the naked eye so there’s no need for binoculars or a telescope, though you will need to allow your eyes to adjust to the dark.”<\/p>\n
This meteor shower has no sharp peak but instead a plateau of good rates that last approximately one week centred on 6 to 7 May.<\/p>\n
What does Eta Aquariids look like?<\/p>\n
To viewers, Eta Aquariids will look like bright streaks against the night sky.<\/p>\n
“You’re looking for bright streaks that appear in the corner of your eye for a fraction of a second,” said astrophysicist Nico Adams with SSP International, a non-profit that promotes STEM education.<\/p>\n
Teri Gee, manager of the Barlow Planetarium in Wisconsin, said there was no better way to experience Eta Aquariids than to see it yourself.<\/p>\n
“It almost feels like you’re discovering it yourself,” she said.<\/p>\n
Where does its name come from?<\/p>\n
The meteor shower is named after the constellation in the night sky that it appears to radiate from, the Aquarius constellation.<\/p>\n
More specifically the meteor shower is named after one of the stars in this constellation: Eta Aquarii.<\/p>\n
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