BACK TO APRIL OBSERVATIONS Young Observers Ottawa RASC Home Page
Every year around November 16 & 17, the Earth passes through a dust cloud left over from a comet called Temple-Tuttle. The result is a meteor shower or shooting stars. This one is called Leonid meteor shower, named because the meteors appear to be showering out of the constellation Leo.

Look at the night sky on the 16th and 17th and on the mornimg of November 18. Get up a little earlier (before the Sun) on November 18 and see how many shooting stars you can see.

If we are lucky, we may be treated to a meteor storm. Maybe thousands per hour instead of the usual twenty per hour. About every 33 years, the Leonid meteor shower gets very active because the comet Temple-Tuttle passes by again and leaves more comet dust for Earth to pass through.

The last active meteor storm was recorded in 1966. Meteor showers are a little unpredictable though, but if the sky is clear you should see some shooting stars.

Enjoy the show.

Back To KID SPACE This page last modified: November 1, 1999 HOME PAGE