BellaOnline Forums Education Astronomy Taurids – Halloween Fireballs *new article*

Thousands of years ago a comet broke up. A remnant of it still visits Earth, adding to the debris stream fuelling the annual Taurid meteor shower. The shower peaks near Halloween and may produce brilliant meteors – its nickname is 'Halloween Fireballs'. But is there something deadly in the debris?

Taurids – Halloween Fireballs

Comet Encke over 3 years of its 3.3-year orbit. Grid lines are 1 astronomical unit (Sun-Earth distance) apart.

[Image via Guy Ottewell]

Here is a Taurid fireball caught during the 2015 meteor shower. A fireball is a very bright meteor.

Photo credit: Bill Allen

Another Taurid fireball from 2015 imaged by Jeff Dai in Tibet.

I saw a Taurid fireball once, it was a truly amazing experience. To me, meteors are things you don't usually see because someone shouts "Look!" and by the time your eyes swivel up, it's gone. But one night in Norway, watching a wonderful display of northern lights, a large ornangeish object slowly moved through the field of view. Weird! what is it? Well, a Taurid fireball. Bright and slow moving. Unbelievable. I could see how people might decide they'd seen a UFO!

Another sublime picture of a Taurid fireball from November 2015.

(No photo credit included)

Earlier this week an intense fireball was widely reported in Europe - the most widely reported fireball ever for the International Meteor Organization. Based on its trajectory, it probably was part of the Taurid shower.

One lucky photographer was braving subfreezing temperatures to photograph the glow of twilight under the stars of the Big Dipper (Plough) in the beautiful snow-covered Dolomite Alps. And got a scenic view with a fabulous bonus. Have a look at the picture of scenic mountains with serendipitous fireball. Just WOW!!!

Image Credit & Copyright: Ollie Taylor

Mona, what a phenomenal photo.