Pictured above is a trail of dust left by the comet Thatcher which orbits the sun once every 415 years, due back in Spring 2276. The dust left behind the path of this comet are what give us the Lyrids. A meteor shower that is known to produce up to 30 meteors per hour at peak. The reason they are called Lyrids is the tails of the meteors all lead back to the radiant in the constellation Lyra. This constellation is located just NE of the bright star Vega illustrated below.The peak of this meteor shower will be early in the morning on April 22nd after the moon has set. Dress warmly. Bring a reclining chair, or spread a thick blanket over a flat spot of ground. Lie down and look up somewhat toward the east. Meteors can appear in any part of the sky, although their trails will tend to point back toward the radiant Vega. Our Skywatcher 15X70 Binocularscan be used for more magnification, or If you would like to take a time-lapse video we would recommend using our Revolution Imager in combination with an All Sky wide angle lens.
