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Should you still haven't had the experience of seeing a meteor shower, this might be your opportunity to check it off your bucket list.
The annual Lyrid Meteor Shower happening each April lights up the evening sky with as many as 15 meteors streaking overhead per hour.
This year, the Lyrid Meteor Shower occurs from April 17-25, as stated by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS).
However, it will reach its highest point during the early hours of Tuesday (April 22), right before sunrise (roughly between 3-5 am).
You don’t require a telescope to observe meteor showers; however, it’s ideal to spot them under a dark sky devoid of both moonlight and artificial illumination, offering a broad and clear vista of the heavens.
'The Lyrids will present you with brief flashes of light that quickly fade away – often referred to as shooting stars,' explained Dr Robert Massey, the deputy executive director at RAS.
The Lyrids have been observed and reported since 687 BC – and no other modern shower has been recorded as far back in time.
"We believe they might be the oldest meteor shower observed by humans, dating back over 2,700 years, all the way to the 7th century BC," Dr Massey mentioned additionally.
A meteor shower occurs when our planet crosses the orbital pathway of a comet—these are ancient celestial objects composed of ice and rock, remnants from the birth of the solar system. solar system .
Whenever this occurs, the tiny pieces of comet debris, typically not bigger than a speck of sand, produce glowing trails in the nighttime sky as they disintegrate upon entering Earth’s atmosphere.
These trails are referred to as shooting stars, despite them not being stars at all -- a fact that leads some astronomers to disagree with the terminology.
The Lyrid meteor shower occurs when our planet crosses paths with the debris trail of Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, which circles the Sun approximately once every 415 years.
'When these comet particles enter our atmosphere and burn up, they create brilliant trails of light, which we observe as meteors,' explained Dr Shyam Balaji, a physicist from King’s College London.
'The Lyrid meteoroids are famous for their brightness and speed, usually creating luminous streaks in the heavens that persist for several seconds.'
For a glimpse of the meteor shower, check the northeastern sky after midnight and locate the star Vega within the Lyra constellation, since that’s where they seem to come from.
'However, you don’t need to look directly at Lyra – meteors can appear in all parts of the sky,' added Dr Balaji.
Since meteors can appear rather dim, it’s advisable to observe them under a dark sky devoid of moonlight and artificial lighting, ensuring you have a broad and unrestricted view of the heavens.
Dr Greg Brown, who works as the public astronomy officer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, stated, "Much like nearly all showers, attempt to locate an expansive area, ideally one that’s well away from urban lighting, and maximize your field of vision across the nighttime heavens."
'Sitting back in a deckchair is an excellent method for achieving this in comfort.'
Even though the temperatures continue to rise, it can still be rather chilly during the wee hours of the morning when these showers are most visible, so make sure you dress warmly.
It’s important to remember that even though the peak occurs on Tuesday (when you can see the highest number of shooting stars per hour), the Lyrids will be visible from today until Saturday next week (April 26).
The Met Office predicts that tonight across the UK will see conditions that are largely dry with periods of clear skies. However, some lingering showers from today will retreat into northern Scotland.
'A Met Office representative informed MailOnline that clouds will build up and bring rain to the southwest region tonight,' they stated.
It appears that earlier in the evening will offer the finest viewing conditions, with places like the Western Isles, the eastern coastline of England, and the southeast part of England expected to experience the clearest intervals, facilitating optimal observations.
Nonetheless, it will offer additional updates next week as the Lyrid meteor shower nears its climax early Tuesday morning.
Out of the twelve meteor showers each year, only one has already occurred, and the largest one is yet to arrive.
The Eta Aquariids become observable around April 19 and continue until approximately May 28 annually, with the highest activity expected on May 5, 2025.
The Eta Aquariids are renowned for their remarkable velocity, hurtling towards Earth's atmosphere at approximately 148,000 mph (66 km/s).
A notable rain of meteors comes from the Delta Aquariids in July (with 25 meteors each hour), succeeded by the Perseids in August (featuring up to 150 shooting stars per hour).
In mid-December, the Geminid meteor shower reaches its peak with as many as 150 brilliant meteors streaking across the sky each hour.
Aside from its high rate of shooting stars, the Geminids are special because the meteors are multi-coloured – mainly white, some yellow and a few green, red and blue.
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