Several celestial events will be taking place this weekend and through the rest of November, including meteor showers and the first-ever Election Day “blood moon” full lunar eclipse.
This weekend, the annual South Taurid meteor shower peaks at about 15 meteors per hour in the east. Some of the “shooting stars” will be visible after dark, but best viewing time is from about midnight until dawn.
The Taurids are not as abundant as other annual meteor showers, which may produce more than 50 meteors per hour. The Taurids, however, usually are brighter and more colorful than most other meteors. A few are so bright that they’re called “fireballs.” Also, the Taurids are much slower than most shooting stars when plunging to Earth, thus providing a better chance of seeing one.
This year, sky watchers are hoping for a better-than-average Taurid show. That’s because every seven years, the meteor shower seems to produce a higher number of shooting stars — and more fireballs — at peak time. It last happened in 2015.
If you miss the South Taurid this weekend, the North Taurid meteor shower will be visible the following weekend (Nov. 12-13). Still later, on Nov. 18, the Leonid meteor shower will peak at about 20 meteors per hour. Next month, on Dec. 14-15, one of the best meteor showers of the year, the Geminids, will peak at about 50-75 meteors per hour.
On Tuesday, another celestial treat is in store for those who care to get up in the early morning to see it — the nation’s first-ever Election Day “blood moon” total lunar eclipse. A total eclipse is called a blood moon when it takes on a reddish tint at full eclipse. This will be the second total eclipse of 2022, the other being on May 16.
Tuesday’s eclipse begins at 4:08 a.m. with total eclipse at 5:15 a.m. It ends at 7:49 a.m., well past sunrise at 7:03 a.m.
November’s full moon is called the “beaver moon” because this is the time of year when beavers begin to take shelter in their lodges, having laid up sufficient stores of food for the winter. It was also the season to trap beavers for their thick, winter-ready pelts.
Elsewhere in the sky, according to David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer, Mars is in the east and Saturn is low in the southwest at dark. Jupiter is high in the south at sunset and appears near the moon Saturday night.
Charles Seabrook can be reached at charles.seabrook@yahoo.com.
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