In April, stargazers got to enjoy the Lyrid meteor shower.
But if you missed it, don’t worry: since April 18, the Eta Aquariid meteor shower has also been falling, and it’s set to peak this week.
Here’s why it happens, when it’ll be at its brightest in the UK, and how to catch it:
What is the Eta Aquariid meteor shower?
As with the Lyrid meteor shower, it’s not that the comets are “shooting” towards us.
They’re part of the debris following a comet (in this case, comet Halley); in our journey around the sun, we pass through this space rubble, some of which then enters our atmosphere.
When they do that, they move so quickly that they compress and superheat the air surrounding them.
That leads to a glowing “head” and, sometimes, a streaking “tail” that...
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