By: Isabella Liu

The Southern Delta Aquariids, which are active from July 18th to August 28th 2024 are a lesser known meteor shower that will peak on July 29, 2024 to July 30, 2024 when the moon is at 30% of [its size?]. According to the American Meteor Society, Delta Aquariids are best seen in the Southern Hemisphere next to the constellation Aquarius.
Meteors are streaks of light in the sky caused by meteoroids passing through Earth’s atmosphere. Meteoroids are chunks of rock or iron that orbit the sun. When a meteoroid enters Earth’s upper atmosphere, it heats up due to friction from the air. The heat causes gases around the meteoroid to glow, and a meteor appears. For this reason, meteors are commonly called shooting stars or falling stars. Meteor showers are events in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate from one point in the night sky.

Ideally, to watch a meteor shower, you would want a dark sky with no moon or light pollution. Light pollution is when there are a number of artificial lights that are disrupting the sky and wasting energy. There are light pollution maps to help you figure out where there is less light pollution. You can also bring binoculars or a telescope. It will be cold, so wear several layers and bring something warm to drink or eat.

There will be 5 to 20 meteors at the peak. The Delta Aquariids are named after Aquarius and the shining star Delta Aquarii which it appears to come from. The Alpha Capricornids are also reaching their peak this Tuesday on July 29th, and the famous Perseids are reaching their peak in August and end on September 1st.

Meteor showers are an amazing and remarkable thing to watch, so I hope you can watch one.

Image Credit by Frank Cone