The first meteor shower of the year is upon us! The Quadrantid Meteor shower is expected to peak on the morning of January 4th. By morning, I mean the time between midnight and dawn today (the day this post was posted!)
The Quadrantids are named after a defunct constellation, Quadrans Muralis. However, it is not very difficult to find out the point where the shower appears to radiate from. The bright star Arcturus (the fourth brightest in the sky) is visible in the North-East in the Northern Hemisphere. The point of radiance of the Quadrantids is very near this star.
The Quadrantids are a unique set of meteors. They have a very small peak duration i,e,, the duration in which there are most of the meteors. They peak for only a few hours, whereas most other meteor showers like the Perseids and Leonids peak for a day or two. Also, the Quadrantids are most suitable for observers from the Northern Hemisphere as its radiant point is very near the North celestial pole.
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| The Quadrantid Meteors appear to radiate from this point; however, meteors can be found in all parts of the sky |
To observe the meteors, all you need is a dark sky. You don’t need extra equipment like telescopes or binoculars, although you might consider something comfortable to lay on as watching meteors is a very patient business.
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