A quick Orionid question

[DaveGarland]

Hi all. Just a simple question. The Orionid shower peaks on October 21, my question is this. Is the peak in the morning, ie 20th pm going into 21st pm. Or is it on the evening of the 21st going into the morning of the 22nd?

Dave.

[Scooot]

Looks like early hours of 20th according to this.

http://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/orionid.html

[ronin]

Suggest you look on the 20th, or morning of the 21st, however you want to count it, but don't wait until then if you can mange to look a day or two earlier, or later if you miss the peak.

The Orinids are bits left over from Halleys comet and if on the "peak" we happen to pass through a region not high in debris then it won't be a high peak.  The distribution of the bits cannot be uniform and so best to treat "peak" as a prediction or expectation, even just an intelligent guess.

If the earth happens to encounter a denser patch one or two days earlier or later then the number per hour could be higher.

[DaveGarland]

Ok. Thanks guys.

[Pete Presland]

and no moon i believe to spoil the view!

[LukeSkywatcher]

I was going to go out last night, but it was literally blowing a hurricane. Tale end of Gonzales still has a lot of power in it.