Watch Up To 100 Meteors Per Hour In The First Meteor Shower Of 2020, Visible From South Carolina
Ring in the new year (and new decade) with an early morning sky show that promises to bedazzle the night sky this January 3-4, 2020. The very first meteor shower of the year is ramped up to produce more then double its usual number of meteors. And with the moon preparing to go down on the opposite side of the sky from the action, South Carolina will have a front row seat for the Quadrantids.
Typically, the Quadrantid meteor shower only produces 40 meteors per hour — but as the new decade begins, it's expected to product at least 100 'shooting stars' in the night sky per hour.
Unlike Perseids (which just occurred in December), the window to view the Quadrantids is must shorter. The expected peak is at 5 a.m on the morning of January 4th, which happens to be a Saturday.
The timing couldn't be any better! With the moon phasing in at 71 percent and setting more toward the west, this means less of the moon's glow will interfere with viewing the meteor shower which will be seen in the Northeast sky.
If you can find the Big Dipper in the Northeast sky, then just look immediately below the handle for the Quadrantid radiant.
If your neighborhood is without a great deal of ambient light and you ordinarily have a great view of the Big Dipper from your own back yard, then you're in luck. Expect to have a front row seat for this dazzling meteor shower from your own deck or lawn.
Scope it out a night or two in advance just to be sure.
Other ideal places to view the Quadrantid meteor shower include the beach, or any place you can find, really, that doesn't have ambient light from artificial sources.
Set an alarm on Saturday, January 4th, so you can rise early enough to get a peek at the first meteor shower of the year. The peak is expected at 5 a.m.
Are you planning to watch the first meteor shower of the year? And more importantly, are you preparing a list of wishes so you can make a wish on each and every shooting star you spot? Wake the kids for this one. This should create some memories they’ll cherish for years to come.
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Robin Jarvis is a travel writer and editor for OnlyInYourState.com with a bachelor's degree in Journalism. Her love for travel has taken her to many parts of the world. She's lived in the Carolinas for nearly three decades and currently resides in Charleston. When she's not working, she loves to cook with friends and check out new adventures. General questions and FAM tours: rjarvis@onlyinyourstate.com.
