Draconid meteor shower, space station flyover tonight

ajc.com

Credit: NASA

Credit: NASA

There’s a lot to watch for in the heavens tonight: the Draconid meteor shower, a space station flyover and a Mars closeup.

The meteor shower is named for Draco the dragon constellation because the meteors appear to travel from a point near the dragon’s head, according to NASA’s Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute.

The Draconid meteor shower will be active starting tonight through Oct. 10, with the best viewing likely tonight.

The meteor shower typically offers a handful of slow-moving meteors each hour, but exceptional displays have been known to happen, SSERVI reported.

Also tonight will be a flyover from the International Space Station, which is expected to be visible for 5 minutes starting at 7:49 p.m.

Lastly, Mars the red planet will be at its closest point to Earth tonight, at 38.6 million miles away, NASA said.

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