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| Orionids Fireball (Photo credit: NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center) |
Stargazers are surely in for a treat on Saturday night. The Orionid Meteor Shower, which occurs twice a year, will be at its peak tonight and can be viewed both in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The Orionid meteor shower is the second of two showers that occur each year as a result of Earth passing through dust released by Halley's Comet, with the first being the Eta Aquarids. The point from where the Orionid meteors appear to radiate is located within the constellation Orion. At 148,000 mph (238,000 km/h), Orionid meteors are the second-fastest of any annual shower. Only the Leonids of November hit our atmosphere faster, at 159,000 mph (256,000 km/h).
The Orionid Meteor Shower is named after the constellation Orion because the meteors seem to come from just north of Orion's bright star Betelgeuse.
If you are in an area that does not have cloud cover or too many lights then you will probably get a site of this spectacular show up until November 13, 2012, with this week-end being the peak.
If on the other it is too cold to stand outdoors and gaze at the sky, then you can always view it on live stream. Here is a link -
http://mygreenbucks.net/watch-free-orionids-meteor-shower-2012-live-streaming-video-download-online/
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