After the world witnessed a total lunar eclipse and planetary conjunction in May this year, there is another major celestial event that is setting the stage in the night sky before the month ends. Stargazers can watch the meteor storm on the night of May 30-31 as Earth passes through the debris of icy Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 (SW3).
While some astronomers believe that the debris could produce a massive meteor storm of up to 1000 meteors per hour, others are not sure. If the meteorite does come, it will come from the dense debris of icy particles broken by comets in the years 1995, 1897 and 1892.
What is Tau Hercules?
The Tau Herculids are fragments of the original comet, dubbed 73P/Schwesmann–Wachmann 3 or SW3. Found in 1930, the comet orbits the Sun every 5.4 years and can be seen from Earth in the evening sky in the months of July and August. Although it is not very bright, it has been breaking since 1995.
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The comet was discovered by Arnold Schwachmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann of the Hamburg Observatory while they were conducting a photographic search for asteroids and minor planets. However, the comet was not seen again until 1979 due to its very low luminosity. The comet’s brightness peaked at magnitude 7 in 1995 and was visible to the naked eye. Then it started splitting.
According to observations, the comet has now broken into at least 68 pieces and is still breaking apart.
Will we see a meteor storm?
According to NASA, the Earth will pass through the debris trail of a ruptured comet on the night of May 30 and the morning of May 31. If the broken pieces are ejected at more than twice the normal speed—fast enough to reach Earth—we could have a meteor shower.
“Spitzer observations published in 2009 indicate that at least some of the fragments are moving fairly quickly. If a meteor shower does occur, the Tau Herculids move more slowly than meteor standards,” NASA said in a statement. They’ll faint.”
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Will India see meteor showers?
No, India will not see a meteor shower.
It will only be visible in parts of North America. Observers have the best chance of seeing a Tau Herculid shower in North America under clear, dark skies. The peak viewing time is around 1 a.m. on the east coast or 10 p.m. on the west coast.
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