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A graphic from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory showing where in the sky the Lyrid meteor shower can be seen, until April 30. Credit: NASA/JPL[/caption]
Washington, April 19 (IANS): Keep your heads up at night this weekend to witness a spectacular celestial show as scientists expect the Lyrid meteor shower to peak shortly before dawn on April 22.
Up to 20 meteors per hour will likely be visible overnight on April 21-22, Xinhua news agency reported on Wednesday citing NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
To view the Lyrid shower this weekend, observers should find an area away from light pollution on the night of April 21.
As the waxing Moon may interfere with visibility, the best time to view it is the few hours after the Moon sets.
Special equipment like telescopes and binoculars are not necessary to view the Lyrid meteor shower, which is safe to view with naked eyes.
The Lyrids are classified as a medium-strength shower and are visible every year in April, according to the Space Science Telescope Institute in in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Lyrid meteor shower is one of the oldest known meteor showers. Records of this shower go back some 2,700 years, according to American astronomer Bruce McClure.
