Haley Starval’s Comet: How and When …

The first days of May help to get an astronomical look at a scene: Eta aquarium meteor shower, Which can be seen on clear nights in the first weeks of May, as debris passes through Earth’s orbit from Halley’s comet.

They are meteorites traveling at 66 kilometers per hour within Earth’s atmosphere. In the specific case of Eta Aquarids, up to 30 meteors are typically seen per hour at a time of maximum intensity. Its journey takes place across Earth’s orbit between April 20 and May 21, and it is at this opportunity that it will reach its greatest splendor in the next two weeks.

How do comets’ paths reach Earth? It happens that when a comet approaches the sun, it leaves a trail of dust behind. Earth’s orbit approaches these impacts and contact occurs with the atmosphere, as debris disintegrates and generates colored streaks in the sky.

This phenomenon can be seen with the naked eye, without the need for additional equipment. According to NASA, you have to accustom your eyes to the darkness of the night for half an hour, after which you can see meteors. In the case of South American countries, visibility is good because of the location of the constellation from which the meteorites come: Aquarius.

However, the particles that make up the meteorite do not come from the last passage of Halley’s comet on Earth, in 1986, but separated from the star hundreds of years ago. The particles come from a region near the star Eta Aquarii, hence the name Eta Aquarids.

Haley approaches Earth every 76 years. His previous visits were in 1910 and 1986 and he is scheduled to close again in 2062.