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Meteor Shower

Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Quadrantid Meteor Shower 2013 to Peak Late Wednesday

The first meteor shower of the new year will peak late Wednesday into Thursday. Clear skies forecast for Wednesday evening.

Weather forecasters are calling for clear skies over Northern Virginia Wednesday night. If you search the skies, you might get a look at a meteor shower. The Quadrantid meteor shower is named for an extinct constellation, but the shooting stars that seem to sprout from it still arrive yearly, and the opening of the 2013 show began overnight Monday into Tuesday. The Quadrantids is one of the lesser-known meteor showers of the year, but that doesn't mean it's anything less than spectacular. Take a look at this Quadrantids meteor shower video or these pictures of the Quadrantids. While the shower begins overnight on the first day of the new year, NASA tells us Quadrantid meteor shower peaks in the wee morning hours of Thursday, when skies …

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Orionids Meteor Shower 2012: Where to Watch in Lorton

Shooting stars from the Orionids meteor shower will be flying early in the morning next week over Lorton.

The offspring of Halley's Comet are about to put on quite a show over the skies of Lorton. Earth will pass through a stream of debris from Halley's Comet beginning this Monday, which will give us the benefit of the annual Orionids meteor shower—though you probably won't see much until a few days later. Fortunately, there are still a lot of places in Lorton where light pollution is not a problem, and you may be able to get a good view right from your driveway our outside a nearby park.  Space.com has these tips and more: Get as far away from city and other artificial lights as possible. Meteor showers are best viewed in really dark skies. Try to keep the moon out of your field of vision, too. The shower should be at its peak the night of …

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