Produced by: Mohsin Shaikh
Every May, Earth slices through debris left by Halley’s Comet, igniting the Eta Aquarid meteor shower. These meteors blaze across the sky at 65 km/s—swift, glowing, and unforgettable.
Set your alarm for 3:00 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. IST on May 5–6. That’s when the shower peaks over India, especially in the early morning hours just before sunrise.
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Your best bet? Head south. Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh offer the clearest skies and higher radiant position, with up to 40 meteors per hour possible.
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Choose dark, open areas—rural fields, hillsides, coastal stretches, or desert plains. Avoid city lights. In northern India, you might catch 10–15 meteors/hour, but only under clear skies.
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The meteors radiate from Aquarius, rising in the east-southeast sky. Don’t stare at the radiant—look 40° away to catch full streaks stretching across your view.
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Watch for rare fireballs—larger fragments that burst across the sky like flashbulbs. They’re unpredictable but possible, especially in wide-open skies with minimal pollution.
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Let your eyes adjust to darkness for 30 minutes. Turn off your phone’s brightness. No telescopes or binoculars needed—just patience and a clear view of the sky.
Photographers should point a tripod-mounted wide-angle lens eastward, just above the horizon. Long exposures in RAW format give the best chance of catching glowing trails.
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The comet responsible won’t swing by again until 2061—but its dust keeps returning every year. The Eta Aquarids are your fleeting annual link to this ancient cosmic traveler.