BALTIMORE — A pretty impressive meteor shower is set to occur this Thursday night into early Friday morning with over 400 meteors per hour. Now this could be a quick burst of shooting stars for the ages or a complete bust with just a few meager meteors gliding through the skies above.
This meteor shower is know as the Alpha Monocerotids and gets it's name from the Monoceros constellation which lies southwest of the constellation Orion in the southeast sky above. So on Thursday night you will need to look right above the horizon in the east to southeast sky above to see the burst of meteors streaming above.
As in years past this show is unique in the sense of it's uncertainty in regards to peak viewing. Up to 400 meteors can be seen within a matter of 30 minutes according to science at NASA'S AMES Research Center. Previous events such as an outburst of shooting stars in 1995 have yielded similar meteor means so this gives scientists a basis to work with when it comes to a prediction on this upcoming show. To get the best view of course you are gonna need a telescope or a good pair of binoculars. You'll want to get out around a half an hour before peak so somewhere around 11:15pm to 11:20pm since peak sits somewhere around 11:50pm. Make sure you are away from the bright city lights and find a spot that is a bit elevated so you can see the show with minimum obstruction on the low eastern horizon.
Weather should not impact this show too much. High pressure will be in control early in the day with clouds holding off until Friday morning out ahead of our next system. There is a possibility those clouds could be sped up by the models in the coming days ahead but as of now we look to luck out with just enough dry air to get in the show. Lows will be bearable in the 40s for decent viewing. Stay tuned for further details on the forecast and it's impact on what looks to be a potentially epic meteor shower for the ages.
