Taurid Meteor Shower Begins Tonight — Southern Taurids Begin November 5, 2013

The South Taurid meteor shower kicks off in earnest tonight — while the South Taurids certainly aren’t the most prolific meteor shower of the year, they do seem to regularly produce large fireballs. So they’re worth the time, in my opinion.

The best time to watch will be tonight around 1 am (early Tuesday morning). Around that time you can typically expect to see somewhere around 5-10 meteors an hour — the peak this year is expected to be right around that number. While the numbers aren’t great with the Taurids, they are actually rather interesting to watch, thanks to their relatively slow speeds, and their tendency to produce super-bright fireballs.

Taurid meteor shower

As far as where to watch — the Taurids will appear to be originating from the the constellation of Taurus, in the southeastern portion of the night’s sky. The Taurids are only really visible to those in the Northern Hemisphere — those in the Southern Hemisphere might see a spare one or two, but the show just isn’t that great for those in the other hemisphere.

Something else to note — since both the Moon and Venus will set before the meteor shower begins tonight, the night’s sky will be good and dark. Perfect meteor watching conditions 🙂


If you miss the South Taurids tonight or tomorrow night, though, don’t worry, because the North Taurids will peak only about a week from now. Since the Moon will be in a relatively bright phase by that point, though, they will be harder to spot than the South Taurids will be.

For information on the other great meteor showers of the year, including the upcoming Leonids, see: Meteor Showers 2013, Dates and Times, Geminids, Leonids, Perseids, Taurids, Ursids, Etc.

Some general tips for those that will be watching tonight:

• Find the darkest sky that you can, preferably far from city lights — dark, rural locations are ideal.

• Get comfortable — a reclining chair, warm clothes, blankets, pillows, etc.

• A cup of warm coffee or hot chocolate tends to make the experience more enjoyable.

Image Credit: Taurid via Flickr CC

6 thoughts on “Taurid Meteor Shower Begins Tonight — Southern Taurids Begin November 5, 2013”

  1. Thank you for this site. Just this evening around 9 pm local time in the sky to the south of Kingman, Arizona, I saw a very bright flash and then the path of a large fire-ball meteor. I now know this was a result of the Taurid Meteor Shower. I didn’t even know that was happening. Thank you for the education.

  2. Thank you for this site. Just this evening around 9 pm local time in the sky to the south of Kingman, Arizona, I saw a very bright flash and then the path of a large fire-ball meteor. I now know this was a result of the Taurid Meteor Shower. I didn’t even know that was happening. Thank you for the education.

  3. ASTEROIDS, COMETS, AND METEORS ORIGINATED FROM EARTH: In the Earth’s past there were powerful volcanic explosions propelling millions of tons of earth soil and rock (now asteroids and meteors which may contain organic molecules or organisms) into space. Read my popular Internet article, ANY LIFE ON MARS CAME FROM EARTH. The article explains how millions of tons of Earth soil may exist on Mars, and how debris we call asteroids and meteors could have originated from Earth. According to a Newsweek article of September 21, 1998, p. 12 that quotes a NASA scientist, SEVEN MILLION tons of Earth soil may exist on Mars! How could this be possible? Read and find out.

    Even if the right chemicals exist, life cannot arise by chance. The
    molecules that make-up life have to be in a sequence, just like the letters
    found in a sentence.

    Scientist and creationist, Brian Thomas explains:

    “Astronomers measure comets’ masses and erosion rates to calculate potential lifespans. Sungrazing comets last fewer than 100,000 years.2 They thus confront
    secular astronomy which maintains that comets formed with the rest of the solar
    system billions of years ago. A solar system that old should have no remaining
    comets.

    How do secularists solve this dilemma?

    Reporting on Ison, The Independent said, “Comet Ison has taken
    millions of years to reach us travelling from the so-called Oort cloud – a
    reservoir of trillions and trillions of chunks of rock and ice, leftovers from
    the birth of the planets.”3

    Unfortunately, nobody has yet witnessed a single one of those
    “trillions and trillions of chunks.” Going strictly with
    observational science, the “so-called Oort cloud” may exist only in
    the reservoir of the human mind.

    Clearly, secular astronomers invented the Oort cloud to rescue their
    billions-of-years dogma from a disintegration process that limits a comet’s
    age—and thus the age of the Solar System—to thousands of years. When Ison
    becomes visible later this year, perhaps it will remind thoughtful viewers that
    the universe is quite young, just as Scripture teaches” (Brian Thomas, M.S., Science Writer at the Institute for Creation research).

    Check out my most recent Internet articles and sites: THE SCIENCE
    SUPPORTING CREATION and WAR AMONG EVOLUTIONISTS (2nd Edition)

    Babu G. Ranganathan*
    B.A. Bible/Biology

    Author of popular Internet article, TRADITIONAL DOCTRINE OF HELL EVOLVED
    FROM GREEK ROOTS

    *I have given successful lectures (with question and answer period
    afterwards) defending creation before evolutionist science faculty and students
    at various colleges and universities. I’ve been privileged to be recognized in
    the 24th edition of Marquis “Who’s Who in The East” for my writings
    on religion and science.

  4. ASTEROIDS, COMETS, AND METEORS ORIGINATED FROM EARTH: In the Earth’s past there were powerful volcanic explosions propelling millions of tons of earth soil and rock (now asteroids and meteors which may contain organic molecules or organisms) into space. Read my popular Internet article, ANY LIFE ON MARS CAME FROM EARTH. The article explains how millions of tons of Earth soil may exist on Mars, and how debris we call asteroids and meteors could have originated from Earth. According to a Newsweek article of September 21, 1998, p. 12 that quotes a NASA scientist, SEVEN MILLION tons of Earth soil may exist on Mars! How could this be possible? Read and find out.

    Even if the right chemicals exist, life cannot arise by chance. The
    molecules that make-up life have to be in a sequence, just like the letters
    found in a sentence.

    Scientist and creationist, Brian Thomas explains:

    “Astronomers measure comets’ masses and erosion rates to calculate potential lifespans. Sungrazing comets last fewer than 100,000 years.2 They thus confront
    secular astronomy which maintains that comets formed with the rest of the solar
    system billions of years ago. A solar system that old should have no remaining
    comets.

    How do secularists solve this dilemma?

    Reporting on Ison, The Independent said, “Comet Ison has taken
    millions of years to reach us travelling from the so-called Oort cloud – a
    reservoir of trillions and trillions of chunks of rock and ice, leftovers from
    the birth of the planets.”3

    Unfortunately, nobody has yet witnessed a single one of those
    “trillions and trillions of chunks.” Going strictly with
    observational science, the “so-called Oort cloud” may exist only in
    the reservoir of the human mind.

    Clearly, secular astronomers invented the Oort cloud to rescue their
    billions-of-years dogma from a disintegration process that limits a comet’s
    age—and thus the age of the Solar System—to thousands of years. When Ison
    becomes visible later this year, perhaps it will remind thoughtful viewers that
    the universe is quite young, just as Scripture teaches” (Brian Thomas, M.S., Science Writer at the Institute for Creation research).

    Check out my most recent Internet articles and sites: THE SCIENCE
    SUPPORTING CREATION and WAR AMONG EVOLUTIONISTS (2nd Edition)

    Babu G. Ranganathan*
    B.A. Bible/Biology

    Author of popular Internet article, TRADITIONAL DOCTRINE OF HELL EVOLVED
    FROM GREEK ROOTS

    *I have given successful lectures (with question and answer period
    afterwards) defending creation before evolutionist science faculty and students
    at various colleges and universities. I’ve been privileged to be recognized in
    the 24th edition of Marquis “Who’s Who in The East” for my writings
    on religion and science.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top