Taurid fireball watch kicks off weeks of sky drama

The annual Taurid meteor shower is set to kick off one of the busiest sky-watching periods of the year for "fireball" hunters.

The Taurids are really two streams of cosmic debris, originally quite close together, that have been pulled apart by the gravitational forces of various planets (especially massive Jupiter) in our solar system over many years as they hurtle by in their orbits around our sun.

That debris was the result of dust and rocks thrown off by the periodic Comet 2P/Encke and Asteroid 2004 TG10. The resultant meteor showers caused when the Earth transits these debris fields are called the South Taurids and the North Taurids (so named because watchers in the southern and northern hemispheres will have different peak viewing times for the showers, although both will have "shooting stars" visible in both hemispheres).

Both Taurid showers produce meteors from just before Halloween to the first week of December, so if skies are cloudy or the moon is offering too much brightness for a few days, you could get lucky a few days later, when conditions are more favourable for watching. (The moon is not expected to provide much competition this year.)

The Taurids are not known for producing lots of meteors—certainly not the "swarms" sometimes associated with better-known showers such as the Geminids or Perseids, which have been known to offer up more than 100 meteors per hour—but they are known for producing a much higher percentage of "fireballs" than most showers. Fireballs typically burn much brighter than most meteors, often last longer and streak across the sky for longer distances, and sometimes glow with different colours or even leave "trails" that linger in the atmosphere.

Although the South Taurids peaked  in the Southern Hemisphere weeks ago, it will reach its height up here on November 5. Look for about five to 10 meteors per hour appearing to radiate from the constellation Taurus (hence Taurid), which will be located in the western sky just before dawn, although fireballs can be spotted any time after midnight and in any sector of the sky. Just give your eyes 30 minutes to adjust and view from a dark area, away from strong lights, streetlights, etcetera.

The North Taurids will peak the night of November 11-12 for sky watchers in northern latitudes, when Taurus will be situated in the south (again, meteors may come from any direction). Start looking shortly after midnight, and be prepared to be patient. Taurids are few and far between, but when you see a fireball, you will remember it.

The Leonids are then due in mid-November, and the sometimes spectacular and prolific Geminids will come around in mid-December.