Dec 27. 2019
Quadrantids Meteor Shower
The astronomical year of 2020 will be launched by a Quadrantid meteor shower, which will be visible until January 12th. The shower display will peak in the night between the 3rd and 4th of January, when up to 120 “stars” will shoot across the night sky every hour. They will seem to be flying out of the constellation Shepherd, located in the northern part of the sky.
The Quadrantid meteor shower is quite mysterious, the origin of its name is the already non-existent constellation Quadrans Muralis whose history is unknown. There are speculations saying that a fragment of a comet which perished approximately 500 years ago is behind its creation. Unfortunately, we won’t be seeing this meteor shower forever. Because of Jupiter's influence, its path is gradually shifting away from the Earth's path, so it is certain that in 1,000 years, no Earthlings will be able to see it.