Leonid ‘fireball’ meteor shower will be visible on Tuesday

The Leonid meteor shower will send shooting stars across the sky in the early hours on Tuesday, according to the American Meteor Society. Since meteors can be harder to see when there is a bright moon and luckily, it will don a five percent visibility. The meteor shower is expected to peak on November 16 and 17, according to a CNN report. The Leonids will be visible from both the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere.

The meteor shower’s name is inspired by the constellation Leo the Lion – as the meteors will be coming from the stars that make up the lion’s mane.

“The diminutive Comet Tempel-Tuttle, the parent body of the Leonids, will cross Earth’s orbit, creating a vaporising shower of debris in the atmosphere,” a CNN report read. The comet takes 33 years to complete one orbit of the sun. Typically, there are between 10 and 15 meteors per hour.

Also Read: Seven-year-old becomes world’s youngest author, gets title of ‘Grandmaster in Writing’

Fireballs and “earthgrazer” meteors are also a hallmark of the Leonid shower. While fireballs are brighter and larger, ‘earthgrazers’ appear with long, colorful tails.

However, this year’s shower won’t produce a meteor storm, which is when you can see upward of 1,000 meteors per hour.