[Explanation] According to the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, at the beginning of the new year, the quadrant meteor shower will reach its peak on the evening of January 3.
With the "Wishing Meteor" across the night sky, the curtain of the "Astronomical Theater" will begin in 2021.
[Explanation] The quadrant meteor shower, the Perseid meteor shower, and the Gemini meteor shower are also called "the three major meteor showers in the northern hemisphere".
[Concurrent] Hu Fanghao, Engineer, Science Popularization Department, Purple Mountain Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences
The quadrant meteor shower is the first meteor shower every year. According to the International Meteor Organization forecast, during the maximum period of 2021 (quadrant meteor shower), the zenith flow rate can reach 110 per hour, that is, the number of meteors per hour is 110 Pieces.
[Explanation] Compared with the other two major meteor showers, the peak period of the quadrant meteor shower is short, only 6 to 8 hours. The meteors in the group generally do not leave a trail in the sky, but very bright fire meteors often appear.
[Concurrent] Hu Fanghao, Engineer, Science Popularization Department, Purple Mountain Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences
The radiant point of the Quadrant Meteor Shower is in the constellation of the constellation Boves, below the handle of the Big Dipper.
On the evening of the 3rd, the moon rises earlier than the radiant point. Moonlight has a greater impact on meteor shower observation. You can choose to face the moon during observation to avoid moonlight from entering the line of sight.
Take the Nanjing area as an example, the moon rise time is 21:29, and the radiant point of the quadrant meteor shower rises at 23:18.
You can choose to watch the meteor shower in the middle of the night.
[Explanation] In January, the "Astronomical Theater" has a series of good shows and excellent films.
In addition to the meteor shower, many wonderful astronomical phenomena such as Venus conjoining the moon, Mars conjoining the moon, Mars conjoining Uranus, and Mercury's eastward distance will appear in sequence, shining in the sky.
Reporter Ge Yong from Nanjing, Jiangsu
Editor in charge: [Zhou Zhaojun]