Tonight, Vietnam welcomes the maximum meteor shower from the 'giant of Oort'

The Lyrids were the world's first recorded meteor shower: From 687 BC, by Chinese astronomers .

According to Time and Date , the Lyrids meteor shower will peak on the night of April 22 and early morning of April 23, Vietnam time. From the perspective of Ho Chi Minh City, about 18 meteors can be observed per hour during this peak night.

Lyrids meteor shower - (Photo: YOU CAN SEE THE MILKY WAY).

Previously, the first shooting stars of the Lyrids fell scattered from April 16. After the maximum night, the meteor shower will gradually weaken and disappear completely after April 25.

This period is not the ideal time to observe meteor showers, because the light from April's waxing "pink moon" can make the shooting stars appear fainter.

Therefore, to be able to observe clearly, you should let your eyes get used to the dark for about 15-20 minutes, choose an airy space and hope for good weather.

The name "Lyrids" is originally named after the constellation closest to the point where the meteor shower originates, so you should look up to the sky and look for the constellation Lyra (Thien Cam), shaped like a piano.

The meteor shower will emanate near the constellation Lyra, where the very bright star Vega is located - (Photo: NEWS TRIBUNE).

The Lyrids meteor shower is also one of the meteor showers with the most interesting origins.

According to NASA, despite appearing to come from the constellation Lyrids, the Lyrids actually originated from C/1861 G1 Thatcher , a giant comet believed to have come from the Oort Cloud, a massive structure filled with objects. ice at the edge of the Solar System.

It took comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher 415.5 years to orbit the sun once. The last time it reached perihelion (its closest point to the Sun) was in 1861.

As the comet orbits the sun, the dust it emits gradually spreads into a tail that extends around the orbit. Every year the Earth passes through this tail, causing debris to collide with the atmosphere, disintegrating, creating colorful streaks of fire in the sky.

That's how the Lyrids meteor shower forms.