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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Many are getting excited at the prospect of a meteor shower to cap Memorial Day weekend, but officials are reminding stargazers to keep their expectations realistic.
According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Monday night into Tuesday morning Earth will pass through the debris trails of a shattered comet named 73 P/Schwassmann-Wachmann, otherwise known as SW3. The comet first broke into fragments back in 1995, and as NASA says, the pieces may become a meteor shower if they were ejected with speeds greater than twice the normal speeds.
If the fragments are fast enough to reach Earth, officials say we may get the faint sight of a meteor shower.
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Under clear skies, observers may witness a tau Herculid shower if prerequisite speeds are met. Officials say the storm could last about a half hour if it comes to fruition, peaking around the 1 a.m. mark on the East Coast.
WBZ's Charlie Bergeron (@CharlieBergeron) reports.
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