Meteor shower in February, what you need to know

do not miss Α-Centaurid meteor shower Flying in the night sky in all its splendorNext February 8. That’s all you need to know about this Celestial Show.

When do you see meteors?

Known as Meteor shower α-centaur The Alpha CentauriThis natural phenomenon can be observed every year from From January 28 to February 21, But The peak frequency will be February 8th.

According to him National Institute of Optical and Electronic Astrophysics of Mexico (INAOE)At least, the maximum rate observed for that day will be 5 meteors per hour.

s The best time to appreciate this phenomenon It will be excellent At dawn on the 8th, Towards the southern part of the sky, toward the constellation Centauri.

• Centaurus is one of the largest, richest, and most beautiful constellations in the night sky.

Where do you see the α-Centaurid meteor shower?

The Centaurs They can be seen best under the night sky when the rain is radiant Constellation Centauri Standing higher above the horizon, The educational app site recommends StarWalk Astronomy.

To be able to enjoy the most meteors, Suggestion Choose a dark, open space And search with the naked eye without the aid of any device, since then Binoculars or telescopes can limit the field of view.

• On February 8 itself, Mercury will be in low solar conjunction, making it the first planet in the system to go from being an evening object to a morning being.

What are meteor showers?

Meteor showers are actually meteor showers. The phenomenon that we estimate is due to fragments Dust and ice, which were separated at some point from the comets That passed through the Earth’s orbit around the sun.

When Earth passes through this cloud of fragments, it enters the atmosphere at a speed of several kilometers per second, causing it to catch fire and emit light.

• If you want to know all the astronomical phenomena for 2021, enter Here.