Taurids meteor shower could be good show this year
The Taurids will be most visible in early November with the Leonids coming later.
Richard TribouRichard TribouContact ReporterOrlando Sentinel
Taurids offer up long, slow burning fireballs
There's a chance early November will be filled with what stargazers often call Halloween Fireballs as the Earth moves through the annual Taurids meteor shower.
The peak nights with potentially up to 12 visible meteors an hour in clear, dark skies are Nov. 5-12 although there's a chance you can get a view of the remnants of Encke's Comet from Oct. 29-Nov. 10, with one ore two meteors an hour.
"The Taurids are not known for their high numbers, rather they are known more for the fireballs they produce," according to a press release from the American Meteor Society.
2015 is predicted to be a year with many potential fireballs visible for two reasons. First, this year could be one in which the Earth runs through the comet's debris field in which there are thought to be larger than normal particles. That means more fireballs. Second, the state of the moon is a thin sliver right now, so not affecting stargazers.
They're called the Taurids because if you look at the constellation Taurus, that's the general vicinity in the sky from which the fireballs will appear. That part of the sky is above the horizon all night long. Look for them to shoot up from the eastern sky in the early evening, overhead from the southern sky at midnight and up from the western sky in the late morning.
Later this month, with peak nights on Nov. 17-18, the Earth will smack into debris that is known as the Perseids meteor shower. With a waxing crescent moon, the Perseids should be visible best after midnight.
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