by The last meteor shower of the year – the Ursids – reaches its peak on Sunday, a few days before Christmas.
Although the Ursid meteor shower is usually not as bright as the Geminids, it can bring surprises.
“The Ursids are generally a sparse meteor shower,” producing about 5 to 10 visible meteors per hour under ideal viewing conditions, said Shyam Balaji of King’s College London.
But eruptions in 1945 and 1986 produced up to 100 meteors per hour, he said.
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“This unpredictability piques the interest of sky watchers,” Balaji said, adding that it is impossible to predict in advance what this year will bring.
Most meteor showers arise from the debris of comets and no special equipment is required to observe them. The Ursids come from Comet 8P/Tuttle.
The moon will be 59% full this night and will obscure some meteors. The viewing lasts until December 26th.
The next meteor shower, the Quadrantids, peaks on January 3rd.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Science and Educational Media Group of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
