The annual Draconid meteor shower begins on 6 October, offering skywatchers a brief but potentially spectacular pre-midnight display amid favourable moon conditions, with peaks expected on the night of 8–9 October.
Draconids set the night sky buzzing this week, with the annual meteor shower beginning on 6 October and expected to reach its peak on the night of 8–9 October, according to Timeanddate.com. For skywatchers, that makes tonight the opening act for a short but potentially memorable display.
The shower appears to radiate from Draco, the Dragon, a northern constellation that sits high enough for much of the Northern Hemisphere to spot it clearly. That is why the Draconids are often linked with the idea of a “cosmic dragon” waking up overhead, especially when the constellation’s zigzag shape stands out against a dark sky.
One of the quirks of the Draconids is timing. Unlike many other meteor showers, they are usually easiest to catch in the evening before midnight, when the radiant point is already high in the sky. Timeanddate.com says the shower is produced by debris from comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner, and that activity can vary sharply from year to year. Most years bring only a modest number of meteors, but the shower has also produced dramatic outbursts in the past, including in 1933 and 1946.
This year should be especially friendly for observers because the New Moon falls on 10 October, leaving the peak nights relatively free of moonlight, according to Timeanddate.com. The same source estimates that viewers may see around five to ten meteors an hour at best, which is not exactly a fireworks show, but still enough to make a late-evening sky check worthwhile. After the Draconids, stargazers can turn to the Orionids, which are active from 2 October and are expected to peak on 21 October.
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