Quadrantid Meteor Shower 2012: January 4 Could Show 100 Shooting Stars Per Hour

Stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere can look forward to 2012's first meteor shower which is set to peak at 2:30 a.m. EST on Wednesday, Jan. 4.

Lasting for several hours, observers can expect the Quadrantid meteor shower to produce as many as 100 shooting stars each hour, according to NASA.

With the moon setting at 3 a.m. EST, ABC News reports those in North America brave enough to face the cold pre-dawn air can look forward to clear skies that are perfect for spotting meteors.

First documented in 1825, the little-known meteor shower is named after the obsolete constellation Quadrans Muralis, which is no longer recognized by the International Astronomical Union, according to Discovery News.

Located between the constellations of Bootes and Draco, NASA writes that the Quadrans symbolize an early astronomical instrument used to observe and plot stars.

Meteor showers happen when the Earth travels through the tail of debris left over from comets or asteroids, notes Space.com.

Check out the slideshow below of past meteor showers:

Comments

[macbevo]

02:50 PM on 03/25/2012

Did anyone see the huge fireball shooting across the east Texas (Jacksonville) sky last night? Traveling NW to SE. Seconds prior I heard what appeared to be a huge bottle rocket being fired off, in the distance, loud enough to make me look up just in time to see it. I never have my camera ready,,, bummer,,

[Ramon Moreno]

07:31 PM on 01/06/2012

Nice quick coverage. Good work...

[keramos]

05:45 PM on 01/06/2012

 A large saucer has been reported as landing in New Hampshire near the debate site.

[Sue Halpern]

12:23 PM on 01/06/2012

Oops, today is the 6th....but at least not the 3rd as this was mentioned.

[Sue Halpern]

12:21 PM on 01/06/2012

And you are telling us about a meteor event for January 3rd...and it is January 5th today? Duh!

[MrSimythe]

07:44 AM on 01/06/2012

And it was cloudy...

[pupmobile]

01:00 AM on 01/06/2012

A day late and a dollar short! lol

[thebargar]

07:33 AM on 01/06/2012

Love your comment. That is the story of my life.... (heavy sig)h.... lol

[pupmobile]

05:14 AM on 01/07/2012

I wish you a happy 2012!! Hope it will be a good one for you!!

[Monique Mckenzie]

11:19 PM on 01/05/2012

LOL inesison they did. I only wish I'd stayed up an extra hour I might not of missed it

[Catalina hime]

10:00 PM on 01/05/2012

How did I miss this :-( Did this article show before. I would have like to see the meteor shower.

[Hellova Stoner]

09:52 AM on 01/06/2012

I know, I only just saw this on the 6th, did not see anything anywhere else about it.

[inesison]

09:17 PM on 01/05/2012

Yea, thanks for the heads up...a day late! Would have liked to have known yesterday...

[Stephen Hotchkiss]

08:51 PM on 01/05/2012

Couldn't see anything in LA, obviously.

[lendtolease]

08:11 PM on 01/05/2012

Stood outside on the 4th for 10 minutes-in 19 degrees-never saw one. Went back to bed.

[STOPYOURHATING]

06:16 PM on 01/05/2012

OH WHY DON'T YOU ALL COMPLAIN THAT YOU DIDN'T SEE ANY THING AND SAY IT IS PRES. OBAMA FAULT FOR NOT LETTING YOU KNOW ABOUT IT OR THAT YOU COULDN'T SEE ANYTHING!! MY POINT IS EVERYBODY WANTS TO MAKE IT HIS FAULT FOR EVERYTHING FROM SOMETHING BIG TO SMALL. GROW UP BLOGGERS !!

[caitsidhe]

10:13 PM on 01/05/2012

You know, using caps lock to type an entire message, pretty much makes anything you say null and void. No one takes that crap seriously. Just thought you should know, in case you ever plan to post again. (Also, people who leave comments on stories they read, aren't really bloggers either.)

[Homey Chives]

12:27 AM on 01/06/2012

Comment fail

[dragondancer1814]

06:11 PM on 01/05/2012

To quote Adam Sandler's character in The Wedding Singer, "Jeez, you know this information might have been a little more useful to me YESTERDAY!"

[MurderinMurphy]

06:07 PM on 01/05/2012

Yea I was all excited to read this, and noticed it was yesterday :(.