Leonid Meteor Shower Peaks 2018 NOV 17-18

[CentaurZ]

The annual Leonid Meteor Shower may already be underway. It is expected to peak during the night of 2018 NOV 17-18. Its radiant is in the constellation Leo. That is the direction toward which the meteor tails point, but the meteors are equally likely to appear anywhere in your sky. The Leonids are debris from the periodic comet 55P Tempel-Tuttle.

The Leonids vary considerably each year in their rates. At the peak, sharp-eyed observers may see as few as ten meteors per hour or as many as a hundred, although in exceptional years this can reach the thousands. This year the expectation is for around 25 per hour.

 The real show begins after Leo rises around midnight and intensifies until morning twilight. At the shower’s peak the waxing gibbous Moon may briefly provide some interference until it sets during the wee hours of the morning.

 Descriptions of the shower or perhaps even lucky photos would be welcome additions to this thread.

[Charic]

1998 gave the best storm I've ever witnessed.

[Peter Drew]

Weather forecast not looking good for the event, wrong sort of shower!       ☹️

[maw lod qan]

Since I got back into the heavens above, I've watched the Leonids with great interest and expectations. 11/17 is, I can't believe it's happening again, my birthday. 

Last year was disappointing.

I hope to at least once in my life to be able look into the sky and see two or three meteors at the same moment. Better yet, catch them in an image.

It's hard to imagine a 1000 a minute like the '66 storm.