Unfortunately, the full moon coincides with the peak of the Orionids this year, which occurs in the early morning of October 21. The radiant point of the Orionids is the club of the hunter Orion. The Orionids usually produce 10–20 meteors per hour.
The two Taurid Meteor Showers last for several weeks before and after their peak dates, but often produce only around 5 meteors per hour, even at their peak. What makes them worth the effort, however, is the fact the they often include a large number of fireballs, extremely bright, long-lasting (1–3 seconds) meteors. The South… Read More »Taurid Meteor Showers
The two Taurid Meteor Showers last for several weeks before and after their peak dates, but often produce only around 5 meteors per hour, even at their peak. What makes them worth the effort, however, is the fact the they often include a large number of fireballs, extremely bright, long-lasting (1–3 seconds) meteors. The South… Read More »Taurid Meteor Showers
The Leonids usually produce 10–15 meteors per hours. They will peak on the morning of November 17.
The Geminid Meteor Shower peaks on the evening of December 13, but the best viewing will be toward morning on December 14 after the moon has set. This is one of the most active showers of the year, often producing up to 50 visible meteors per hour in dark areas.
Winter begins in the northern hemisphere at the winter solstice at 10:58 AM EST on December 21. This solstice occurs when the earth's north pole is at its maximum tilt away from the sun. The summer solstice for the southern hemisphere occurs at the same time.
The Ursids run December 17–26, but even at their peak before dawn on December 22, you should only expect to see 5–10 meteors per hour. To make matters worse this year, the shower will be washed out for much of the night by a waning gibbous moon.
The winter solstice for the Northern Hemisphere occurs on Wednesday, December 21, at 4:47 pm EST (21:47 UTC). The winter solstice is the point in the earth's orbit when the North Pole is tilted directly away from the sun. It is the shortest day and longest night of the year, and it marks the beginning… Read More »Winter Solstice
High-intensity solar winds may cause displays of the Aurora Borealis—also known as the Northern Lights—that will be visible in Maryland as far south as Annapolis this week. Due to requests from the community, we will be holding a Northern Lights watch party at the Greenbelt Observatory on Thursday, July 13, 10:00 pm–midnight, weather permitting. Members… Read More »Northern Lights Watch Party
A partial solar eclipse will be visible from Greenbelt on Saturday, October 14. The Astronomical Society of Greenbelt will be hosting a viewing party at the Greenbelt Observatory. This event is free and open to the public. The eclipse begins at noon when the moon's edge starts to move between the earth and the sun.… Read More »Partial Solar Eclipse Party
Although the solar eclipse will be total over parts of the US, Greenbelt, MD, is not on the path of totality. From here, the sun will appear 87.5% covered at maximum. The eclipse will begin at 2:04 pm and end at 4:33 pm, with coverage reaching the maximum at 3:20 pm. The Astronomical Society of… Read More »Solar Eclipse
The Astronomical Society of Greenbelt will provide telescope views of the April 8 solar eclipse at the Greenbelt Observatory. Eclipse glasses will be distributed while supplies last.