Meteor streaks delighted skywatchers this weekend as Earth passed through the dust path of Halley’s Comet in an annual meteor shower display.
The Eta Aquariid meteor shower, which can be seen in the northern and southern hemispheres in the constellation Aquarius, peaked this weekend with best observation times in the early hours of the morning after 3 a.m. local time, weather permitting.
Skywatchers were expected to see up to 30 meteors per hour slithering through Earth’s atmosphere in a late-spring shooting star. The event is famous for its fast-moving meteors with long trains, moving at up to 41 miles (66 kilometers) per second, according to the American Meteorite Society.
If you’re hoping to take pictures of meteor showers in the future, our guide on how to photograph meteor showers can help. You can also use the best cameras for astrophotography and best lenses for astrophotography guides to prepare for the next meteor shower.
Related: Best meteor showers this year
Check out stunning images of the Eta Aquarid meteor shower by skywatchers who stayed up late (or rose too early) to catch a glimpse of food debris from Halley’s Comet illuminating Earth’s skies.
BEAUTIFUL ETA AQUARID GRAZING FIREBALL #SPMN060522B as recorded today at 2h03m35s UTC from Olocau, #València by Alex Gómez & Juan Gómez. As the beam approaches the horizon, cometary rockets increase their length and duration. More details in our list: https://t.co/CRfB0fblVv pic.twitter.com/x1IXmv0k47May 6, 2022
Looks like I might have caught a meteor or a meteor from the Eta aquarid shower tonight, it was a beautiful green, left by the Milky Way around 3am. #etaaquarid #Metorshower #swansea #nasa #bbcskyatnight #Meteor #wales #stargazingwales #space #milkyway pic.twitter.com/AJbjaek02yMay 7, 2022
Blink or you will lose the meteor! One of several Eta Aquarid meteors we saw in the early hours of dawn. Saw 4 (of 25 possible). Super crushed ???? pic.twitter.com/bd0ci3LIEVMay 6, 2022
Our favorite meteor story from this year came from Ric Kearbey, a meteorologist at 10 Tampa Bay WTSP in Florida. Kirby and his daughter, Kylie, were out hoping to see the shooting star, he recounted on Twitter.
“I don’t think we’ll see any of it,” she said. So I said to her, ‘Let’s say a quick prayer,'” Kirby said. “We did and boom, we saw the most amazing meteor I’ve ever seen. Huge, shining and lit up the sky for 15 seconds.”
Kirby joked, “Does anyone need her prayers?” While posting a picture of him and Kylie, who is about five years old, judging from Kirby’s previous social media posts.
Kyleigh and I went out to watch the Eta Aquarid Meteor shower. She said, “I don’t think we’ll see anything.” I told her let’s say a quick prayer. We did and boom, we saw the most amazing meteor I’ve ever seen. Huge, bright and lit up the sky for 15 seconds. Anyone else need their connections? ???? pic.twitter.com/GoEOqKdpiPMay 6, 2022
Instagram was also full of shower scenes from the Southern Hemisphere and from countries like Japan.
Editor’s note: If you’ve taken an amazing photo of the Eta Aquarid meteor or other night sky scene and want to share it with Space.com for a story or photo gallery, send photos, comments, and location information to [email protected].
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