Ursid meteor shower: How to see

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Look up to see the Ursid meteor shower, the last celestial display of the year, on Sunday morning.

The diminutive meteor shower is often overshadowed by the Geminid meteor shower, which peaks about a week earlier. And the Ursides always take place near the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year, which occurs on Saturday. Meteor showers are also the least observed due to the busy holiday season and typically cold, cloudy nights in the Northern Hemisphere at this time of year, according to American Meteor Society.

The shower also favors the Northern Hemisphere because the jet, or the point from which the meteors appear to emerge in the night sky, never rises high enough in the sky for those in the Southern Hemisphere.

The moon will be 54% full on Sunday, according to NASAwhich will limit the visibility of the faint meteors, but experts have tips on how to get the most out of viewing the watch faces.

The meteor shower is expected to peak between 4 and 5 a.m. ET Sunday, said Robert Lunsford, fireball report coordinator for the American Meteor Society. But it is also possible to see meteors in the sky just after midnight, according to EarthSky.

The Ursiides originate from the bowl of the Little Ursa Minor, also known as the constellation Ursa Minor, near the bright orange star called Kochab, Lunsford said.

While the moon rises near midnight local time for most places in North America, the evening hours before moonrise can be the worst time to try to catch a glimpse of the meteors because the meteor activity will be out of sight and blocked by the horizon.

Instead, Lunsford recommends looking for meteors streaking across the sky in the final hours before dawn. Up to 10 meteors may be visible per hour. Just remember to block the moon to increase your chances of seeing meteors, he said.

“To best see these meteors face north with the moon behind you,” Lunsford said via email. “Lie down in a comfortable armchair and center your vision halfway up the sky, so that the horizon is at the bottom of your field of vision. If trees or other obstacles block your view, look a little higher in the sky. The atmosphere is thickest in the lower parts of the sky, and that’s where you’ll see the most activity.”

To give your eyes a chance to adjust to the dark and increase your chances of spotting meteors, the American Meteor Society recommends bundling up against the cold temperatures and staying outside for at least an hour.

Meteor showers occur when Earth encounters the stream of material left behind by comet 8P/Tuttle, which sheds material as it orbits the sun, according to EarthSky.
The Ursids are also a relatively new meteor shower, reports EarthSky. While many of the meteor showers seen throughout the year have been annual events for centuries, the clock sides weren’t observed until the 20th century, when observers noticed meteors that appeared to be coming from the Ursa Minor.

The Ursides may be the last meteor shower to peak this year, but the Quadrantides aren’t far behind.

The annual Quadrantid meteor shower returns to the night sky on Dec. 26 and will be at its most active when 2025 starts, according to the American Meteor Society.

The Quadrantides will face less competition from the Bright Moon, which will only be 11% full during high activity.

“If your skies are cloudy on the morning of Dec. 22, you’ll have another opportunity to see a meteor shower in the near future when the Quadrantids peak on the morning of Jan. 3,” Lunsford said.