Lyrid meteor shower 2017 viewing guide
Produced by AccuWeather.com Grahpics Artist Al Blasko
The Lyrids is a top-five annual meteor shower. It will produce about 20 meteors per hour at its peak. The shower peaks Saturday (predawn Saturday in the Western Hemisphere and Saturday night in the Eastern Hemisphere).
The Lyrids will be the strongest shower since the Quadrantids of early January.
The shower puts on a show for about three nights surrounding the peak night.
This shower is best viewed in the Northern Hemisphere but is also visible in the Southern Hemisphere.
Likely a Lyrid Meteor captured by AccuWeather.com Astronomy friend Ron Shawley
According to the American Meteor Society, the Lyrids produce fireballs, but you will not see the long trails behind the meteors that are common to other showers like the Perseids.
The moonlight wreaks havoc with most of the major meteor showers of 2017. However, this will not be the case for the Lyrids. Yes, the moon will rise before dawn, but it will be a crescent.
The best viewing is after midnight when the radiant is high in the sky. The absolute best time to view the shower will be predawn Saturday. In fact, as close to dawn as you can get, the peak occurs during the midday hours (EDT).
The radiant rises before midnight and is high in the sky through the rest of the night.
The radiant is not extremely important, but the higher in the sky it is, the better chance you have of seeing the meteors that streak in all directions from a common origin.
If you miss the shower Saturday morning because of cloud cover, look for meteors again Saturday night!
Viewing Conditions
Across North America, the shower should be at its strongest before daybreak Saturday. Here is a look at the expected cloud cover.
Across Europe, Saturday night will be the most active night. Here is a look at expected cloud cover across the continent.
Again, the peak night is not incredibly important for this shower since it is not an extremely active meteor producer. So, take a look Saturday and Sunday night if you don't have clear skies on the peak night.
Thanks for reading! Just look up because you never know what you will see!
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