The 365 Days Of Astronomy, The Daily Podcast Of The International Year Of Astronomy 2009

I’m Rob, your Last Minute Astronomer, bringing astronomy to normies and nerds, with little time to spare. We’ll start by talking about this month’s big events, then highlight the naked eye planets, and finish up with the lunar phases, so you can plan ahead better than me.    5th – ETA AQUARID METEOR SHOWER – Around 10-20 meteors per hour if we’re lucky, the Eta Aquarids are a minor shower that favors those in the southern hemisphere.  The best time this year is after midnight (when the Moon sets) and before dawn. Just remember each meteor is a piece of debris left over from Halley’s comet, and we’re crashing into it at over 100,000 miles per hour, which crushes the atmosphere it hits, heating it up and causing the bright flash. You never know when you’ll see something awesome! Some advice for watching:  Find a dark location and lie down in a reclining chair or something that insulates you from the ground. Check the weather to see if the skies will be clear  Adapt your eyes to the dark by staying away from lig