If you like to look at the stars during the night, then you will notice this month’s meteor shower. The Lyrid meteor shower. The event will begin in mid-April and will last until the end of the month.
The peak of the meteor shower will be during the evening of 22 April, and it will last after midnight. Although this year the Moon will be bright and outshine most if the faint meteorites, you should still be able to spot a few bright ones. According to Earth Sky, the Lyrid meteor shower “tends to come in a burst and usually lasts for less than a day.”
As with all meteor showers, it’s best to find a dark location, get a lounge chair and stare at the night sky. Your eyes should adjust after about 30 minutes of sitting in the dark and you should start spotting more and more meteorites. The meteors that will appear will be seen anywhere in the sky, and they will appear to radiate from the constellation Lyra.
Sky Events for Stargazers
According to the Hamilton Amateur Astronomers, there are five events stargazers will enjoy this month:
- On April 11, you can see Mercury just above the horizon, before dawn. It will be low in the eastern sky.
- On April 16-17, you will be able to see Mercury and Venus low during the dawn. The two planets are close to each other.
- On April 22, during the meteor shower peak, you will also see the star Vega above the horizon at around 9-10 pm (local time in the northern hemisphere)
- On April 19, the full Moon will show up, and it is called by the early First Nations people “The Pink Moon,” as it marks the arrival of the first spring flowers – the moss pink.
- On April 25, close before sunrise, you will see the Moon on the sky near Saturn.
You can check out more information about the sky events and the Hamilton Amateur Astronomers meeting at Amateur Astronomers.