SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Northern California's second biggest meteor shower of the year will peak this week, but with showers in the forecast, the big question is what will be best time to view the Lyrids.
This is one of the oldest known meteor showers. It was first observed over 2,700 years ago, according to NASA.
The Lyrids are part of space debris from Comet Thatcher discovered in 1861. Each April they become visible as Earth passes through this debris. They are known for their fast and bright appearance with about 10-20 meteors streaking across the sky every hour.
The best viewing will be overnight April 21-22 and again overnight April 22-23 between midnight and dawn. With a fairly new moon, the skies will be especially dark from very little moonlight.
The weather will be cooperating this year for the peak as skies clear after a cold, spring storm rolls through Northern California earlier in the week. This will bring a cooler and showery weather pattern for those that are trying to catch the Lyrids before Wednesday.
By Friday, skies clear and temperatures warm, making for some optimal weather conditions for the Lyrids peak.
If you're looking to capture the spectacle, taking photographs of meteors can be challenging. However, NASA has some tips for snapping pictures of the streaks of light.
- Get away from city light and let your eyes adjust for about 30 minutes
- Use a tripod to prevent too much shaking from holding a camera
- Use a wide-angle lens
- Use shutter release or built-in timer
- Manually focus lens
- Aim in the area of the radiant
- Sit back and enjoy the show
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