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Attention Shooting Star Fans! Currently one of the most beautiful meteor streams of the year is active: the Leonids. The climax of the shooting star can be admired in the night sky from November 6 to 30.
Komet 55P / Temple-Tuttle
Shooting stars are named Leonidas because they appear to come from the constellation Leo (Leo). The constellation rises in the east after 11 p.m. The Leonids can also be seen in the night sky to the northeast. The higher the lion is in the night sky, the more shooting stars there are.
The Leonids, however, originate from Comet 55P / Temple-Tuttle, which orbits the Sun every 33 years and leaves behind countless fragments, the so-called “meteorites.” If these meteorites enter Earth’s atmosphere, they burn up and can be perceived as shooting stars, called meteors. Leonids are particularly fast at this. They can reach speeds of up to 70 kilometers per second, which corresponds to 252,000 kilometers per hour.
Peak on November 17
This year between ten and 20 shooting stars are expected per hour, writes the Bavarian radio. But because this stream of meteors is so variable, you never know exactly how many there will ultimately be.
The last time Comet 55P / Temple-Tuttle was near the sun was in 1998. That is why the Leonids from 1994 to 2003 were particularly spectacular. Hundreds, if not thousands, of shooting stars lit up the night sky every hour. The comet will not be close to the sun again until 2031.
According to Bayrischer Rundfunk, the Leonids will peak this year around noon on November 17. Therefore, most of the shooting stars will be seen on the night of November 18.
And don’t forget: when you see a shooting star, you make a wish.
