Orionid meteor shower

We have to wait until December for the Geminid meteor shower, but there’s a lesser-known shower happening right now, the Orionids, named for their origin, the Orion constellation. The Orionid meteors are space dust from Halley’s comet. As Earth moves through the comet’s trail of debris, tiny rocks enter our atmosphere and burn up, which is what causes the “shooting star.”

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The Orionids aren’t as prolific as the Geminids or Perseids, but they are very bright because of the angle at which they enter our atmosphere. Plus, the moon won’t be around, so the sky will be nice and dark. If you watch the sky for long enough, you have a very good chance of seeing one of these streak across the sky.

The average rate is 20 to 25 per hour around the shower’s peak, which is Saturday.

To watch, look toward the constellation Orion, which rises in the east around 11 p.m. After midnight, the constellation will be in the southeast sky. Any shooting stars you see originating from that direction are likely to be part of the Orionid meteor shower.

Uranus in opposition

The planet Uranus is in “opposition” on Thursday evening, which means it’s directly opposite from the sun. As the sun sets in the west, Uranus will rise in the east as fully illuminated as possible.

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Uranus is almost always impossible to see with the naked eye. It’s the second-to-last planet in our solar system, in front of Neptune. The best chance you’re going to get is when the planet is in opposition.

So this evening, if you happen to be in a very dark location, you may be able to see Uranus with the naked eye. Look to the east-southeast and, if you can, track down the constellation Pisces. It will be toward the bottom of the Pisces “v.”

If you’re in an area with more light pollution, a pair of binoculars will help.

Venus and Mars at dawn