Keep your eyes peeled.
While we’re only three days into 2024, one of the strongest meteor showers of the year is set to be visible in Ireland and the UK tonight.
The first one of the year is set to peak this evening (Wednesday, 3 January) and you certainly won’t want to miss it.
The meteor shower up above us this evening is the Quadrantid Meteor Shower which runs from 28 December until 12 January, however, it’ll reach its peak tonight.
The incredibly strong celestial phenomenon can produce around 110 shooting stars every single hour.
The peak of the Quadrantids will last for around six hours between late tonight and dawn tomorrow morning.
2024’s first meteor shower set to light up the sky tonight
Royal Museums Greenwich have said that to stand a good chance of watching the spectacle this evening you should head to a wide open space with little light pollution at around midnight.
It said:
“Hunting for meteors, like the rest of astronomy, is a waiting game, so it’s best to bring a comfy chair to sit on and to wrap up warm as you could be outside for a while.
“They can be seen with the naked eye so there’s no need for binoculars or a telescope, though you will need to allow your eyes to adjust to the dark for at least 15 minutes beforehand.”
And now for the bad news.
Unfortunately, the peak will coincide with the Moon’s Last Quarter phase which means moonlight will likely cause some interference in viewing the shooting stars.
Also, Met Éireann has forecasted that tonight will be “cold with an added wind chill factor”, with lowest temperatures of zero to 5 degrees.
As such, you’ll want to be wrapping up warm if you’re heading out to see the meteors.
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