Watch for the Meteor Shower

One of the nice parts about observing the sky in November is that the sky is starting to turn pretty — the constellation Orion is rising later in the evenings, and we get the Leonid meteor shower.  If it’s not too cold where you are, you can go out very late in the evening on November 16, or even better early in the morning on November 17.  Look in the direction of the constellation Leo (which is where the meteors will appear to be radiating from) and just count meteors. It’s not clear how many you’ll see — the meteor count depends on what portion of the meteor-creating stream of particles Earth moves through. But, give it a try. And dress warmly.

A few years ago I stayed up through the wee hours to count meteors during the Leonids. I was laying on the hood of my car, wrapped in blankets and several layers of warm clothes.  Only after I finished observing did it occur to me that I could have started my car, let it run for a short while, and then laid on the warm hood!  That’s not as environmentally friendly as it could be, unless you have a Prius or something. But, you could bring out an electric blanket and power inverter and run off your battery for a while and keep warm that way.

It’s a thought.  Whatever you do, though, check out the Leonids (and the stars) and stay warm!