November Nights: Orion Dodges Taurid Fireballs, Leonids Shower Jupiter

Summary: Astronomical showiness marks November nights as Orion dodges Taurid fireballs, the Leonids shower Jupiter, and Mars and Venus cozy up to Jupiter.

Taurid fireball + aurora over Colville Reservation, north central Washington, 1:29 a.m. Pacific Standard Time, Nov. 3, 2015: Rocky Raybell, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr

November nights are showy in 2015, with Orion the Hunter returning to dodge the Taurids’ famous fireballs shooting out from Taurus the Bull and with Leonid meteors showering Jupiter, which joins Mars and Venus in rare planetary closeness.

The moon dims its bright reputation as the solar system’s second brightest object. Entering into non-competitive phases as waning crescent, new moon, and first quarter during meteor shower peaks, the moon promotes visibility of the Taurids and Leonids against darkened skies.

The two branches of the Taurid meteor shower, known as Southern and Northern Taurids, peak in the early hours between midnight and dawn on this month’s first two Thursdays, one week apart, on Nov. 5 and 12, respectively. With Taurid fireball frenzy occurring in seven-year cycles, 2015 is expected to showcase the flashy meteors that exceed Venus, the night's second brightest object, in brightness. Named for Taurus the Bull constellation, their radiant, or apparent (but not actual) point of origin, the Taurids overlap annually to light up October and November nights as Earth orbits through debris strewn by the meteors’ parent body, Comet Encke, and to celebrate the November nights’ reappearance of Orion the Hunter.

Almost one week after the North Taurid’s peak, the Leonid meteor showers follow up with their peak in the after-midnight to before-dawn hours on Tuesday, Nov. 17, and Wednesday, Nov. 18. Appearing to radiate out from Leo the Lion constellation, the Leonids mark Earth’s orbital path through debris shed by the meteors’ parent body, Comet Tempel-Tuttle.

Jupiter appears above the horizon near Leo’s tail. In the early, pre-dawn hours of the eastern skies, Jupiter forms a month-long, close trio with Mars and Venus.

Orion the Hunter constellation returns to autumn’s nights on Nov. 8, midway between the two Taurids’ peaks. The easy-to-recognize constellation chases its northwestern neighbor, Taurus, as the Bull rises to its greatest height on November nights shortly after midnight.

Orion dominates the night skies of Northern Hemisphere winters and Southern Hemisphere summers. The constellation marks the hunter’s right shoulder with Betelgeuse, the night sky’s ninth brightest star. As an asterism, or recognizable pattern of stars, Orion’s Belt of three stars is the constellation’s most identifiable feature and also the easiest way to find Orion. From west to east, the starry trio consists of Mintaka, Alilam and Alnitak. Tracing a line westward from Mintaka leads to the Hyades, the V-shaped asterism forming Taurus the Bull’s face.

November nights in 2015 are showy, with annual peaks by both Northern and Southern branches of the Taurid meteor showers as well as by the Leonid meteor shower. Of the five visible planets, Jupiter joins Mars and Venus in early pre-dawn travels across the eastern skies while the sun hides Mercury and Saturn from view.

Taurid fireballs in Colorado: EarthSky @earthskyscience via Twitter Nov. 5, 2015

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Taurid fireball + aurora: Rocky Raybell, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/rockyraybell/22736508062/

Taurid fireballs in Colorado: EarthSky‏ @earthskyscience via Twitter Nov. 4, 2015, @ https://twitter.com/earthskyscience/status/662057300119678976

For further information:

"2015 Taurid Meteor Showers Peak Before Dawn November 5 and 12." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2015.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news-blogspot/2015/11/2015-taurid-meteor-showers-peak-before-dawn-november-5-and-12/

Byrd, Deborah. "Everything you need to know: Leonid meteor shower." EarthSky > Tonight > Astronomy Essentials > Space. Nov. 17, 2015.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/?p=29831

Byrd, Deborah. "Taurid fireballs photos and videos." EarthSky > Today's Image. Nov. 19, 2015.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/todays-image/see-it-best-photos-of-taurid-fireballs-november-2015?

EarthSky‏ @earthskyscience. "Taurid fireball (left) plus debris trail from second (red swirl, right). Photo: Joe Randall." Twitter. Nov. 4, 2015.
Available @ https://twitter.com/earthskyscience/status/662057300119678976

Kronk, Gary W. Meteor Showers: An Annotated Catalogue. The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series. 2nd ed. New York: Springer Science + Business Media, 2014.

Lewis, Danny. "Orion's Return, Falling Fireballs and Other Treats in November's Night Skies." Smithsonian SmartNews. Nov. 3, 2015.
Available @ http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/novembers-night-skies-feature-orions-return-and-meteor-shower-180957146/?no-ist

McClure, Bruce, and Deborah Byrd. "May 2016 guide to the 5 bright planets." EarthSky > Astronomy Essentials > Space. May 1, 2016.
Available @ http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/visible-planets-tonight-mars-jupiter-venus-saturn-mercury