Orionid meteor shower lights up skies nationwide this fall

The Orionid meteor shower begins in October and is active until November 7, peaking on the nights of October 21-22 with up to 20 meteors per hour under dark skies.

The moon will be 76% full, primarily intensifying skyglow during the night and restricting the true brilliance of the shower during its peak.

The meteors are moving at a speed of 41 miles per second, and travelling around 148, 000 mph into Earth’s atmosphere.

The area of the sky where the meteors originate is near the constellation Orion which is where the name of the shower comes from. Notably, the constellation does not create the shower, it is simply the point where they appear to emerge in the night sky.

The meteors are made of space debris that enters into our atmosphere each fall coming from the comet 1P/Halley. The comet leaves behind ice and dust after passing through the solar system with its debris passing through the atmosphere twice a year.

Furthermore, the comet Halley has a very long orbit around the Sun, specifically taking 76 years to complete. The last time it was passed through was in 1986 and it will not pass through the inner solar system again until 2061.