Orionid Meteor Showers From Halley’s Comet Light Up The Sky: How To Watch

One of nature’s most anticipated light shows will culminate this week as space debris and dust trails from the famous Comet Halley scatter across the night sky.

The Orionid meteor shower is expected to peak at 2:00 p.m. ET on Friday, October 21, but is best viewed earlier in this time zone, between midnight and dawn. When viewed properly, away from bright lights and light-polluted areas, viewers can expect about 10 to 20 meteors an hour during this time, according to EarthSky.

As the meteor shower peaks, the moon approaches a narrow waning crescent and is no longer bright enough to obscure the meteors. However, NASA Meteoroid Environment Office head Bill Cooke suggests looking anywhere in the night sky distant from the moon to best observe the fireballs.

“It takes about 45 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark so they are more sensitive and can see finer. If you look at your bright phone, a street light, or the moon, you’re ruining your night vision,” Koch said.

NASA recommends getting outside at least 30 minutes before viewing meteors to get acclimated to the night sky.

“Watching meteor showers is something that takes time. You should spend about two hours outdoors – it’s not a 15-minute adventure,” Cooke added.

The meteor shower officially began on September 26th and will continue until around November 22nd, so skygazers will still have a chance to see the Orionids after the peak.

The Orionids radiate from the constellation of Orion the Hunter – specifically a point near Orion’s Sword, near the large red star Betelgeuse – but you don’t need to know the location of that point to see the meteors. They will appear in all parts of the sky.

No special equipment is required to view meteor showers, and the Orionids are visible from all regions of the world, weather permitting.