Photo: young couple watching meteor shower / Shutterstock
Stargazers will have the opportunity to see one of the year's most magical meteor showers this spring in Vancouver.
The Lyrid meteor shower takes place in the Lower Mainland from April 16 to 25, but it will peak on April 23. During its peak the shower will produce around 10 to 15 meteors per hour, in a dark sky.
With that being said, the shower is also known to have uncommon surges that may produce up to 100 meteors per hour. However, it is very difficult to predict when one of these rare occurrences will take place.
EarthSky notes that, "we expect the peak viewing hours to take place in the dark hours before dawn April 23, but under the light of a bright waning gibbous moon."
Meteor showers take place when the earth moves through debris left behind by comets and asteroids. Space.com reports that the Lyrid meteor shower is, "the dusty trail of a comet with a centuries-long orbit around the sun."
Stargazers should opt to travel as far away from city lights as possible in order to avoid light pollution that will obscure the clarity of heavenly bodies. While this works best in more remote places, anywhere that has a higher elevation will also provide more ideal viewing conditions.
