The Taurids is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is unusual in that it consists of two separate streams.
The object responsible for the Northern Taurid meteor shower is believed to be an asteroid. And that asteroid is related to a comet.
The asteroid is named 2004 TG10. The Spacewatch program discovered it on October 8, 2004. Its orbit around the sun closely matches that of periodic Comet Encke (officially known as 2P/Encke). Scientists believe this asteroid was once part of a much larger object known as the Encke Complex.
The most widely accepted theory is that about 20,000 years ago, a much larger object broke up, creating Comet Encke and several asteroids and meteor showers. Scientists named this group of resultant objects after the most prominent member of the group: Comet Encke. Hence, the Encke Complex.
A recent study indicates that the asteroid 2004 TG10 is only one of 10 related asteroids that may be responsible for this meteor shower. If that is true, then no single asteroid is producing the material causing the Northern Taurid meteors.
How is a mystery like this solved? Time and teamwork. Special night-time video cameras record incoming meteors, and computers calculate the orbit almost immediately. Scientists compare these orbits to known objects, such as comets and asteroids. A direct match is unlikely, because any piece of material ejected from a comet or asteroid – perhaps hundreds of years ago – has been subjected to solar radiation and planetary perturbations, changing its path around the sun. So, its final orbit, just before it enters our atmosphere, is likely different than the orbit it originated from. Astronomers who specialize in celestial mechanics will be the ones to bring us the solution.
The shower runs annually from September 7 to December 10. It peaks this year on the the night of November 4 and the morning of the 5th. The second quarter moon will block most of the dim meteors this year. But if you are patient, you may still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Taurus, but can appear anywhere in the sky.
Irene W. Pennington Planetarium 