Experience meteor showers until the end of the month.

The wonders of space can continue to amaze you.

With the recent solar eclipse encapsulating many in Ontario, those vying for more astronomical events can still check out an annual meteor shower.

The Eta Aquariids meteor shower is still taking place until May 27. While it may have peaked in the night between May 5 and 6, there is still time to catch a glimpse and wish on a shooting star.

“A couple times a year we see these things in the sky called shooting stars. And sometimes we get groups of shooting stars that appear altogether. And this is what we call a meteor shower,” said Elaina Hyde, director of the Allan I Carswell Astronomical Observatory. “We’re thinking that the show could be pretty good for Eta Aquariids this year. It’s around the time of the new moon. So that’s already good. Because it’s less light in the sky. And it’s a strong meteor shower. Unfortunately, it’s best viewed from the southern hemisphere, but we will get to see it here in the North as well.”

A meteor shower is an event where a number of “meteors” or cosmic debris, enters the earth’s atmosphere at a high rate of speed.

Eta Aquariids meteors are given their name after the region, or radiant, of the sky that they appear to come from. In this case, the point in the sky from which these originate is almost directly Aquarii – also known as the brightest star in the constellation of Aquarius.

If you’re an avid fan of astronomy and hope to catch this meteor shower, it’s suggested that you plan ahead and find the right location.

“If you’re anywhere around Ontario, or Toronto, it’ll be very, very low in the east as a few degrees above the horizon, and the meteors will sort of be appearing to shoot out of out of that location,” said Hyde.

Hyde mentions meteor watching is ideal for a camping plan.

“If you do go out camping and you’ve got dark skies anyways, just get yourself a clear view off to wherever direction that the meteor shower you’re interested in is.”

For more astronomy-related information visit https://rascto.ca/