Comet Halley is parent of 2 meteor showers
The famous comet Halley spawns both the October Orionid meteor shower and the May Eta Aquariid meteor shower. It'll return to the inner solar system in 2061. The post Comet Halley is parent of 2 meteor showers first appeared on EarthSky .
Comet Halley, known as 1P/Halley, orbits the sun approximately every 76 years. Each time it passes by, solar heat causes the comet to release a trail of debris into its orbital path. Earth intersects this path twice a year, resulting in the appearance of two yearly meteor showers: the Eta Aquariid meteor shower in May and the Orionid meteor shower in October.
These meteor showers are named for the radiant points, areas in the sky where the meteors appear to originate. The Eta Aquariid shower's radiant point is near the star Eta Aquarii in the constellation Aquarius, while the Orionid shower's radiant point is near the constellation Orion the Hunter. Halley's Comet itself is not visible during these meteor showers, as it is too far away.
Its orbit is littered with comet fragments due to its numerous passes around the sun over millennia, which, when Earth's orbit intersects Halley's, results in these meteor showers.
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