Camel-o-par-whats-it? Camelopardalids. Common pronunciations are camel-oh-PAR-dahl-idz, kah-MEL-oh-PAR-dal-idz, and camel-oh-par-DAL-idz. It it’s too much of a tongue twister, you are camelopardon-ed. 🙂
A Brand New Meteor Shower!
On May 24, 2014, the Earth will travel through debris ejected from comet 209P/LINEAR in the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. If the comet was actively producing a lot of dust during that time, the Earth may be treated to a new meteor shower, tentatively named the May Camelopardalids. The May Camelopardalid radiant is in the constellation Camelopardalis, which translates to “camel leopard” or giraffe.
Credit: NASA/MEO/D. Moser using Starry Night Pro.
Here’s the Comet 4-11
Comet 209P/LINEAR is a Jupiter-family comet discovered by the Lincoln Laboratory Near-Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project in 2004. While orbiting, the closest it comes to the Sun is 0.9 AU (84 million miles) and the farthest it gets from the Sun is about 5 AU (465 million miles), close to Jupiter’s orbit. This year, 209P will have a close approach to Earth on May 29. It will come within a distance of 0.04 AU of our planet. That’s about 3.7 million miles – a pretty close shave in cosmic terms. But no worries, there’s no chance it will hit us.
Recent data shows that 209P is not very active, meaning it’s not releasing much gas or dust. But there is no data that can tell us how active 209P was in the 18th and 19th centuries, when we think the up-coming intersecting debris trails were created. If the comet wasn’t very active back then, we may not even have a meteor shower on May 24. But if it was, we could be in for a treat.
How can I enjoy the show?
North America has a pretty good seat for this cosmic event. First, check the visibility map to make sure it’s visible from your location. Then check the weather – if you are expecting clouds, then Mother Nature has just rained on your parade, you won’t be able to see any meteors. If the weather gods are smiling down upon you, find a safe, dark location and lay out beneath the stars. You don’t need to look in any particular direction, just straight up. Meteors can appear all over the sky. Add a lawn chair or sleeping bag and snacks and you should be set!
Information courtesy of Nasa.gov
