Space

India’s Orionid Meteor Shower Peaks on 22 October – Best Times and Tips for Viewers

By Sounak Mukhopadhyay

The Orionid meteor shower will reach its peak on 21‑22 October. In India, the most favorable viewing window is the pre‑dawn hours of 22 October, when the sky is darkest and the radiant is high. In Mumbai, Stargazing Mumbai estimates the best period to be roughly 3:30 AM to 5:15 AM Indian time, though exact times differ slightly in other cities. The shower’s radiant rises above the horizon around 10‑11 PM, climbs higher through the night, and passes almost overhead before dawn at latitudes similar to Mumbai.

For optimal viewing, choose a dark rural location away from city lights or a high‑rise terrace if you live in an urban area. Settle into a reclining chair or sleeping bag and allow your eyes to adjust. Look across a wide expanse of sky rather than focusing on a single patch. Before moonset, face east or northeast with the Moon behind you; after moonset, lie back and look overhead and toward the east, covering as much open sky as possible. Meteors can appear anywhere, so avoid concentrating only on the radiant.

The radiant lies in Orion’s upper region near Betelgeuse, close to the Orion‑Gemini border. Under dark, moonless conditions, the peak can produce about 10‑20 meteors per hour; with moonlight, rural observers may see only a few. Sightings often come in bursts with quiet intervals in between.

The Orionids are caused by dust and debris left by Halley’s Comet. Earth passes near the comet’s orbit each October and May, and some particles enter the atmosphere at about 66 km/s, creating the familiar shooting stars. Roughly half of the Orionid meteors leave glowing trails that linger in the sky; those farther from the radiant can produce longer, more striking trails.

Halley’s Comet last visited the inner solar system in 1986 and is expected to return in 2061. Until then, the Orionids provide an annual opportunity to observe its scattered remnants.