History of Meteor shower in Timeline

A meteor shower is a celestial event where numerous meteors appear to originate from a single point in the night sky. These meteors are caused by meteoroids, streams of cosmic debris, entering Earth's atmosphere at high speeds. The vast majority of these meteoroids are small and disintegrate before reaching the surface. Intense showers, known as meteor outbursts or storms, can produce over 1,000 meteors per hour, with the Leonids being a notable example. While the Meteor Data Centre lists many suspected showers, only about 100 are well-established. Resources like NASA provide information on viewing opportunities and track active meteor showers.

1911: Death of George Johnstone Stoney

In 1911, Irish astronomer George Johnstone Stoney, who attempted to calculate the position of dust at Earth's orbit, died.

1917: Death of Arthur Matthew Weld Downing

In 1917, British astronomer Arthur Matthew Weld Downing, who attempted to calculate the position of dust at Earth's orbit, died.

1951: Comets Produce Debris by Water Vapor Drag

In 1951, Fred Whipple demonstrated that comets can produce debris by water vapor drag and envisioned comets as "dirty snowballs."

1966: Leonid Storm

In 1966 there was a Leonid storm. The Leonid meteor shower peaks around 17 November of each year.

1981: Donald K. Yeomans reviewed history of meteor showers

In 1981, Donald K. Yeomans of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory reviewed the history of meteor showers for the Leonids and the dynamic orbit of Comet Tempel-Tuttle, showing relative positions of the Earth and Tempel-Tuttle, and marking where Earth encountered dense dust.

1985: Identification of years responsible for Leonid meteor storms

In 1985, E. D. Kondrat'eva and E. A. Reznikov of Kazan State University correctly identified the years when dust was released, responsible for several past Leonid meteor storms.

1994: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 impact on Jupiter

In 1994, the impact of Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 on Jupiter formed a brief trail.

1995: Prediction of the Alpha Monocerotids outburst

In 1995, Peter Jenniskens predicted the 1995 Alpha Monocerotids outburst from dust trails. Also, observations of the 1995 alpha Monocerotids were used to demonstrate how the gravitational pull of planets determines where dust trails pass by Earth.

1995: Demonstration of Planetary Gravitational Pull on Dust Trails

Observations from the 1995 alpha Monocerotids were used to demonstrate how the gravitational pull of planets determines where dust trails pass by Earth.

1999: Leonid Storm

In 1999 there was a Leonid storm. The Leonid meteor shower peaks around 17 November of each year.

1999: Application of dust trail method in the West

In anticipation of the 1999 Leonid storm, Robert H. McNaught, David Asher, and Finland's Esko Lyytinen were the first to apply the dust trail method in the West.

2001: Leonid Storms

In 2001 there were two Leonid storms. The Leonid meteor shower peaks around 17 November of each year.

2002: Leonid Storms

In 2002 there were two Leonid storms. The Leonid meteor shower peaks around 17 November of each year.

2003: Discovery of the origin of Quadrantids and Geminids

In 2003, it was argued that most short-period meteor showers are a product of infrequent disintegrations, such as the Quadrantids and Geminids which originated from breakups of asteroid-looking objects (196256) 2003 EH1 and 3200 Phaethon, respectively.

March 7, 2004: Possible Meteor Observation on Mars

On March 7, 2004, the panoramic camera on Mars Exploration Rover Spirit recorded a streak believed to have been caused by a meteor from a Martian meteor shower associated with comet 114P/Wiseman-Skiff.

2006: Predictions for future dust trail encounters

In 2006, Jenniskens published predictions for future dust trail encounters covering the next 50 years.

December 20, 2007: Expected Strong Display from a Martian Meteor Shower

A strong display from a Martian meteor shower associated with comet 114P/Wiseman-Skiff was expected on December 20, 2007.

2017: IMO Meteor Shower Calendar

The IMO (International Meteor Organization) Meteor Shower Calendar 2017 includes maps of drifting "fixed points" due to the Earth turning on its axis.