Mérida, Yucatan (May 03, 2021).- The cosmic debris that Halley’s Comet left in its path in 1986 is the cause of the Eta Acuáridas meteor shower, which will be visible at dawn next Thursday 6, Friday 7, and Saturday 8, reported the Technological Institute of Mérida (ITM ) professor, Eddie Ariel Salazar Gamboa.
It is expected to observe up to 40 meteorites per hour since the Moon will not affect it, so the expert recommends moving away from light pollution to an open space.
He points out that this astronomical phenomenon will take place from 3:30 a.m., when the constellation emerges completely in the southeast of the celestial vault, until 6:30 a.m. when the sun comes up.
The college professor explained that meteorites “are stone, ice and/or metallic particles that are several centimeters in size, which pass through the atmosphere, leaving a trail lasting several seconds.”
He mentioned that this natural phenomenon is recorded thanks to the cosmic debris that a comet leaves in the Universe, as it passes through perihelion.
On this occasion, the cause is Halley’s Comet, whose period is 76 years, since it was observed in 1910, then it arrived in 1986, and will return in 2062.
Salazar Gamboa explained that some comets, when they pass close to the Sun, leave a large tail of various materials, such as dirty water ice, carbon dioxide, and other substances, such as sulfur, silicon, magnesium, ammonia, methane, etc.
He added that when the comet is close to the Sun, this material reflects sunlight and therefore we see the comet’s tail, shining in all its splendor during dark and moonless nights.
He highlighted that these particles are very small, some of them reaching a size just a few centimeters wide.
He explained that of the 25 meteor showers that are recorded throughout the year, the three most abundant are Perseids, Geminids, and Quadrantids, followed by Orionids and Eta Aquarids, whose name derives from the constellation in which it is observed.
