The meteor shower peaked around 1 a.m. ET, with 10 to 25 meteors per hour spotted falling through the night sky, according to EarthSky.com, which described the meteor shower as “decent.”
The comet, officially known as 73P / Schwassmann-Wachmann, or SW3, was discovered in 1930 by German observers Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann. It was not seen again until the late 1970s, and in the 1990s the comet shattered into several pieces, NASA said.
By the time SW3 crossed Earth again in 2006, it was nearly 70 pieces and has continued to fragment since then, the statement said. It was unclear whether the debris would hit the Earth’s atmosphere at a speed high enough to cause meteor showers.
Each year, there are about 30 meteor showers that appear when the Earth passes through traces of debris left by a comet or asteroid that are visible to the naked eye.
Some meteor showers have been around for centuries. For example, the Perseid meteor shower, which occurs every year in August, was first observed about 2,000 years ago and recorded by Chinese astronomers, NASA said.
Meteor showers are usually named after the constellation from which they appear to emit into the night sky, although Robert Lunsford, secretary general of the International Meteorological Organization, said the Tau Herculids were incorrectly named.
In a blog post before Monday’s meteor shower, he said they would appear to radiate from a constellation known as Bootes, northwest of a brilliant orange star known as Arcturus (alpha Bootis).
More meteor showers
There are several other opportunities to witness meteor showers this year.
Delta Aquariums are best seen in the southern tropics and will peak between July 28 and 29, when the moon is 74% full.
Interestingly, another meteor shower peaked that night – Alpha Kozikornids. Although it is a much weaker shower, it is known to produce several bright fireballs during its peak. It will be visible to everyone, no matter which side of the equator they are on.
The most popular Perseid meteor shower of the year will peak between August 11 and 12 in the Northern Hemisphere.
Here is the schedule of meteor showers for the rest of the year, according to EarthSky’s forecast for meteor showers.
- October 8: Draconids
- October 21: Orionids
- November 4 to 5: Southern Taurids
- November 11 to 12: Northern Tauris
- November 17: Leonids
- December 13-14: Geminids
- December 22: Ursidi
Ashley Strickland contributed to this report.
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