SOLAR SYSTEM

Detailed explanation-1: -Meteor showers are named for the constellation where the meteors appear to be coming from. So, for example, the Orionids Meteor Shower, which occurs in October each year, appear to be originating near the constellation Orion the Hunter.

Detailed explanation-2: -Meteor showers are usually named after a star or constellation that is close to where the meteors appear in the sky. Perhaps the most famous are the Perseids, which peak in August every year. Every Perseid meteor is a tiny piece of the comet Swift-Tuttle, which swings by the Sun every 135 years.

Detailed explanation-3: -The radiant or apparent radiant of a meteor shower is the celestial point in the sky from which (from the point of view of a terrestrial observer) the paths of meteors appear to originate. The Perseids, for example, are meteors which appear to come from a point within the constellation of Perseus.

Detailed explanation-4: -Meteor showers are normally named after the constellation from which the meteors appear to originate. This “fixed point” slowly moves across the sky during the night due to the Earth turning on its axis, the same reason the stars appear to slowly march across the sky.

Detailed explanation-5: -Orionids are some of the fastest and brightest meteors, entering the atmosphere at just under 70 kilometres per second. Orionids get their name because they seem to radiate from the constellation Orion, but they can appear anywhere in the sky. Stargazers can usually expect to see up to 25 meteors per hour.

Detailed explanation-6: -Why are they called the Geminids? All meteors associated with a shower have similar orbits, and they all appear to come from the same place in the sky, which is called the radiant. The Geminids appear to radiate from a point in the constellation Gemini, hence the name “Geminids.”