Астронет: Астрономическая картинка дня Метеорный дождь над Тунисом http://variable-stars.ru/db/msg/1845349/eng |
Credit & Copyright: Makrem Larnaout
Explanation:
Does the Earth ever pass through a wind of meteors?
Yes, and they are frequently visible as
meteor showers.
Almost all meteors are sand-sized debris that escaped from a Sun-orbiting comet or
asteroid, debris that continues in an elongated
orbit around the Sun.
Circling the
same Sun, our Earth can move through an
orbiting debris stream,
where it can appear, over time, as a
meteor wind.
The meteors that light up in
Earth's atmosphere, however, are usually destroyed.
Their streaks, though,
can all be traced back to a single point on the sky called
the radiant.
The
featured image composite was taken over two days
in late July near the ancient
Berber village
Zriba El Alia in
Tunisia, during the peak of the
Southern Delta Aquariids meteor shower.
The radiant is to the right of the image.
A few days ago
our Earth experienced the peak of a
more famous meteor wind --
the
Perseids.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.