Tuesday’s new moon may give Texas stargazers best chance to see Orionid meteor shower

The new moon Tuesday will give stargazers a dark sky to catch the Orionid meteor shower.

This astral event happens each time Earth passes through debris and ice left by Halley’s Comet. In 2022, the meteor shower is active from Oct. 2 to Nov. 7.

Do not fret if you have not viewed the phenomenon, you still have plenty of time. The National Weather Service forecast shows clear skies for most of next week.

A new moon, which is the first lunar phase, is mostly not visible to the naked eye. It renders the skies darker making any meteor activity stand out in contrast.

The best way to catch a glimpse of the meteor shower in Texas is to look up to the southwest — in the direction of the constellation Orion — and take in as much of the sky as you can. Make sure you find a fairly dark spot, then lay down on your back. At peak times, which is from midnight until dawn, the shower can produce 20 to 30 meteors an hour with a clear sky, according to space.com. In the past, it has shown a spectacular display of 80 meteors an hour.

For photography buffs, here are some tips from space.com on freezing frames of the event.

Happy gazing!

This story was originally published October 20, 2022 at 11:24 AM.