In the past few days, dozens of meteors have crossed the skies of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul. The increase in activity is related to the Eta Aquadrid meteor shower, reaching its peak this week, which is between the 5th and 6th.
Some objects were recorded by cameras from the climate monitoring network Klima Ao Vivo and Bramon (Brazil’s Meteor Observatory) and the Heller and Jung Space Observatory.
The first took place on Wednesday (28th) at 11:52 pm, between the cities of Boccario do Layo, Bom Principe, and Farragilliha. Shortly thereafter, at 12:10 pm, another was seen at Tangará (SC).
Still on the 29th, early in the morning, young astrophotographer Gabriel Zaparoli filmed two meteors in the city of Torres (RS). One after the other happened, about 3 minutes, over a period of about nine minutes (you can check the images in the video that opens this article).
At the Heller-Jung Observatory, Takkara (RS), a beautiful fireball – a very bright and slow type of meteor – was filmed on Saturday night (1), in addition to a recording of a green meteorite on Thursday night. It passed over the sea, to the southwest of the state.
According to Professor Carlos Fernando Jung, owner of the observatory and director of Bramon’s southern region, the rise in meteors – also popularly known as “shooting stars” – is already a reflection of the Eta Aquadarius rain, which will reach its peak In the coming days.
To prove the great activity, they superpumped the images recorded by the observatory for two days over the weekend. The lines are meteor – more or less bright and even colored – and the dots forming circles are stars (as our planet moves).
You can see dozens of them. See how impressive:
Eta aquadress
There will be maximum rainfall activity between 5 and 6 May. “But it is already possible to see many of them. Here in the Southern Hemisphere, the rate of visible meteors is higher than in the Northern Hemisphere, with forecasts of up to 50 per hour”, emphasizes Jung.
The Eta Aquadress is one of the most beautiful astronomical events of the year. What makes it special is the point where the meteor bodies transform into the constellation Aquarius (hence the name) and its composition: the remnants of the famous comet Halley.
“It is known for the high speed of its meteors, reaching 66 km / s. They usually leave a bright mark in the sky for several seconds,” the professor says. Some of them may also appear to explode.
From anywhere in Brazil, without the need of binoculars or special equipment for nearly a month, the rain is visible to the naked eye. “Just look east and wait; the best time is from 2 o’clock.”
Eta aquirus occurs in early May each year, when the Earth, in its translational movement around the Sun, crosses the comet’s orbit, where a trail of debris and dust floats – thousands, perhaps millions, in Haley’s previous passages. , Is left for years. When they enter our atmosphere at high speeds, they burn leaving beautiful – and harmless – light paths.
Our planet crosses the “road” of Hailey twice a year, at two different points. It is also responsible for the Orionid meteor shower (in the constellation Orion), which we observe every October, when the Earth passes through the second “leg” of its orbit.
