A meteor shower of Draconians hit the earth

Starting from October 6, the Draconians — a meteor shower - poured down on the Earth. But in the Northern Hemisphere, it will be best to see this phenomenon on Saturday, October 8, 2022.

By the weekend, observers will be able to track the fall of up to 10 stars per hour. Then the rain will subside, but it will still be possible to watch it until Monday. To get the best view, experts advise finding a place with a clear sky and away from sources of light pollution — such as large cities. The Draconians are best seen in the evening after dark, representatives of the Royal Museums of Greenwich (Great Britain) said. Unfortunately, this year the full moon falls at about the same time, so the viewing conditions are not the most ideal.

"The moon's radiance will certainly make the sky less dark, which is generally not ideal for stargazing. But the meteorites are still bright enough to be easily seen, despite the radiance of the Earth's satellite," said Jake Foster, an employee of the Astronomy Department of the Royal Museums of Greenwich.

Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through a cloud of cometary debris. The Draconid stream originates from the debris of comet 21 P/Giacobini-Zinner — a small object with a diameter of 2 kilometers. It ejects its debris every 6.6 years as it orbits through the Solar System.

The Draconians got their name from the constellation of the Dragon, which is their radiant point — the visual source of the stream. A long and winding constellation can be seen in the northern sky, above the Big Dipper and the Polar Star. The point from which the rain seems to come almost coincides with the head of the constellation of the Dragon.

When meteorites consisting of ice and dust enter the Earth's atmosphere, they burn up, arranging a light show for the audience. The beautiful streaks visible in the night sky can actually be caused by cosmic particles the size of a grain of sand. If the particle is larger than a grape, it will create a fireball and will be accompanied by a persistent glow, The Daily Mail reports.