Meteor shower to brighten heavens

[Snellius]

The annual Lyrid meteor shower will peak before dawn on Thursday, April 22. Skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere with dark skies away from city lights could see anywhere from five to 25 shootings stars per hour, or one every few minutes.

The timing of this year's version is good, because the moon just passed its new phase and its otherwise bright light not a factor.

The Lyrids are best seen between about 2 a.m. and daybreak local time, regardless of where you live, astronomers say. That's when the shower's radiant -- the point from which they appear to emanate -- is highest in the sky. The Lyrid radiant is in the constellation Lyra, and very near to the bright star Vega.

Vega is easy to find. It's in the eastern sky but nearly overhead in the predawn hours. It is the brightest star in that region of the sky and the 5th brightest star overall.

http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/space/04/21/meteor.shower/index.html

[Van Helsing]

1. Sweet.

I forgot about that. They Lyrids can put on a great show, but they don't compare to the Leonids. Thanks for reminding me. :) :yourock: