The Lyrids: The First Recorded Meteor Shower in History
According to Time and Date, the Lyrid meteor shower will peak on the night of April 22 and the early morning of April 23, Vietnam time. From the perspective of Ho Chi Minh City, about 18 meteors can be observed per hour during this peak night.
Lyrid Meteor Shower – (Photo: YOU CAN SEE THE MILKY WAY).
Prior to the peak, the first Lyrids began to appear on April 16. After the peak night, the meteor shower will gradually weaken and completely disappear after April 25.
This period may not be ideal for observing the meteor shower, as the light from the “Pink Moon” in April, which is approaching full, can make the meteors appear fainter.
To enhance your viewing experience, it is recommended to allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness for about 15-20 minutes, choose an open space, and hope for clear weather.
The name “Lyrids” is derived from the constellation nearest to the radiant point of the meteor shower, so you should look up at the sky and search for the constellation Lyra, which resembles a lyre.
The meteor shower radiates near the Lyra constellation, home to the bright star Vega – (Photo: NEWS TRIBUNE).
The Lyrid meteor shower is also one of the most intriguing meteor showers in terms of its origin.
According to NASA, although it appears to radiate from the Lyra constellation, the Lyrids actually originate from C/1861 G1 Thatcher, a massive comet believed to come from the Oort Cloud, a vast region filled with icy bodies at the edge of the Solar System.
It takes approximately 415.5 years for the comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher to complete one orbit around the Sun. Its last perihelion (the point closest to the Sun) was in 1861.
As the comet orbits the Sun, the dust it emits gradually spreads out to form a tail along its orbit. Each year, Earth passes through this tail, causing the debris to collide with the atmosphere, disintegrating into colorful streaks of fire in the sky.
This is how the Lyrid meteor shower is formed.
