2013 Quadrantid meteor shower to peak early Thursday

Quadrantid meteor shower, which is likely to fill the morning sky with hundreds of shooting stars in the early hours of the Thursday morning, can be viewed live on NASA and Space.com. Live webcast of the Quadrantid meteor shower from January 2 to January 4 will be provided by NASA scientists at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

The live feed of Quadrantid meteor shower will go live at around 6 pm ET or 5 pm CT in Alabama. Quadrantid meteor shower will best viewed by stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere, though the display should be visible from anywhere on Earth north of the latitude 51 degrees south, confirms NASA.

Quadrantid meteor shower, occurs each January when the Earth passes through debris left from comet 2003 EH1 and the debris enter our atmosphere at 90,000 mph and burn up 50 miles above the Earth’s surface, explained NASA in a release. NASA has advised stargazers to allow their eyes 30-45 minutes to adjust to the dark before look straight up in the sky.

According to the Royal Astronomical Society the Quadrantid meteor shower will be visible mainly in the north east and east of England. Stargazers in north west and the Midlands will have a great viewing experience if sky remains clear. The Quadrantids have a maximum rate of about 80 per hour, varying between 60-200, however, according to the Marshall center officials light from a waning gibbous moon will wash out many Quadrantids, cutting down on the number of meteors.

Quadrantid meteor shower, the first meteor shower of 2013, can be viewed live tonight through live webcast at NASA and Space.com.