Photographing Meteor Showers Part 1
My latest photo infatuation is astrophotography.
I’ve always enjoyed looking up at the stars at the end of long sunset photo session. But honestly I had no clue what I was looking at! Sure I could pick out the big dipper, and a few other constellations but that was about it.
I’ve decided it is time not only to learn more about basic astronomy but also about how to capture it in a photograph.
Mid October 2018, Astronomical twilight, Nikon D800, Nikon 14-24 mm f/2.8 @ 14mm, 30 seconds, ISO 4000, f/4.5, pattern metering
Capturing Meteor Showers
This is the first of a three part blog series. Part 1 explains meteor shower definitions and properties. Part 2 will cover how to research and pre-plan a meteor shower photo shoot. And Part 3 will cover the best method of capturing the event in photograph(s).
So, what causes a meteor shower?
Meteors are interplanetary bits of ice and rock debris originating from comets and asteroids. Most meteors originate from icy comets but some are pieces of rocky asteroids.
Traveling at upwards of 10,000 mph, most meteors vaporizes as they hit the earth’s atmosphere. The high speed collision creates streaks of light as they burn up in Earth’s atmosphere. The streaks of light are often called shooting stars or fireballs. When a bunch of meteors hit the atmosphere close together in time the event is called a meteor shower. When a meteor makes it through the Earth’s atmosphere and touches down, the rock is called a meteorite.
Because comets, bands of asteroids, and the Earth travel in routine orbits, it is possible to predict when they will pass near each other. In fact, scientists can predict with great certainty specific meteor shower events. There are of course rogue outlier meteors that travel alone through the galaxy and are less predictable.
Not only can scientists predict when a meteor shower might occur, they can also predict the number of meteors and peak per hour time! This is great news for photographers hoping to capture the event in a photo.
When is the next meteor shower?
Lyrids meteor shower is quickly approaching. Its meteors will be visible in the Northern Hemisphere April 14th through April 30th. The highest concentration of meteors will be seen on the nights of April 21st & 22nd. Eighteen meteors per hour is expected during this meteor shower.
While the Lyrids shower does not produce the greatest number of meteors compared to others, it is known to produce bright streaks. Each meteor is seen for a few seconds each with a glowing tail.
The Lyrids shower is one of the oldest. Meteors from the Lyrids shower origin from a comet called c/861 G1 Thatcher. The comet was first identified by A.E. Thatcher in April of 1861. The Chinese observed the meteor shower as early as 687 BC.
The shower is named Lyrid because it originates from the constellation Lyra. Radiant is the name given to the point in the sky where meteors will originate. For reference, the brightest star in the Lyra constellation is Vega. Being able to find the Vega star in the Lyra constellation is important if you plan to capture photographs of the shower. More on this later.
Enough for now. Look for Part 2 soon. I’ll provide you:
Aa list of pre-planning resources,
Details about ideal meteor shower conditions,
How to find where the meteors will come from, and
The name of an app that makes planning much easier.
Cheers,
Steve