look at the sky! Meteor showers peaked over Cincinnati on Friday night

The Orionid meteor shower is expected to peak overnight (October 21) into the early dawn hours of Saturday (October 22), and with mostly clear skies expected across Greater Cincinnati, this makes for a great time to get outside. And watch some fireballs fly across our sky!

What makes this year’s viewing conditions even better is that our moon phase is currently waning or shrinking, with an illumination of 14% tonight, making the sky even darker. If you’re inside a metro area, city lights can add enough light pollution to wash out some of the view, but more rural areas away from the lights will have the best view.

Orionids got their name due to the fact that meteorites look like they originated around the constellation Orion. Around Greater Cincinnati, Orion can be found around the southwest sky and about 20 degrees above the horizon.

This meteor usually comes every year near the end of October because Earth passes through a swarm of meteors left behind by Halley’s Comet. When these bits of dust and small pieces encounter our atmosphere, they encounter friction and burn overhead.

While you will be able to see some meteors cascading across the sky tonight, the best sighting will be during the pre-dawn hours on Saturday (October 22). This is because the Earth at that time will be moving toward the direction the meteorites originated in, making them faster and brighter across the night sky.