Snow and shooting stars will cross the sky for some of us
It’s the start of a new year and the weather seems to have returned to its seasonal form. Lake effect snow will continue to be a part of the forecast for parts of central and northern New York through tonight. My forecast calls for the moderate to at times heavy lake effect snow in Oswego & northern Oneida counties to slowly migrate northward through this afternoon and tonight. You can find the forecast maps for snowfall for today here, tonight here and Tuesday here by clicking on those individual links. You can track the lake effect with Interactive Doppler Radar and zoom down to street level here and watch the bands move with the Triple Doppler Radar loop here. If you are not inside the lake effect snow, expect cloud cover, flurries and even some sunshine. By tonight, the lake effect snow should edge even further to the north. If areas across central and southern New York can obtain enough clearing skies tonight, a meteor shower will be visible!
The Quadrantid meteor shower might the best meteor shower that you have never heard of. That is mainly due to the fact that it happens in January. The weather is not usually conductive for people to watch meteor showers. Either, the skies are cloudy and/or snowy, or it is just to cold to venture outside to watch the celestial skies for meteor showers. Still, if you are interested, and skies can clear up enough across sections of central and southern New York, you are in luck for a bright show. Just make sure to dress warmly tonight.
According to this website, this years Quadrantid meteor showers could be tremendous because of a new moon (no moonlight). In addition this website also says that these meteor showers are know to create fireballs which are an amazing site if you have ever seen one.
Here’s how to view them according to this site:
“If you happen to live near a brightly lit city, if possible, we recommend that you drive away from the glow of city light. After you’ve escaped the glow of the city, find a dark, safe, and possibly isolated spot where oncoming vehicle headlights will not occasionally ruin your sensitive night vision.Look for state or city parks or other safe, dark sites. Once you have settled down at your observation spot, face toward the north or eastern portion of the heavens. This way you can have the Quadrantid’s radiant within your field of view. If you can see each star of the Little Dipper, your eyes have "dark adapted," and your chosen site is probably dark enough. Under these conditions, you will see plenty of meteors. For many meteor showers it is often recommended to look straight up, but for this year’s Quadrantids we advise that observers face as low as possible toward the horizon without being looking at the ground. In other words, have the bottom of your field of view on the horizon. While you can still catch meteors while looking straight up, you will have an improved opportunity to observe more by looking toward the horizon. Meteors will grab your attention as they streak by! On average, and under clear skies, observers should see 40 to 60 meteors per hour but every so often these rates can exceed up to 120 meteors per hour in rural locations. During ideal conditions, the Quadrantids meteor shower should put on a spectacular viewing experience! The clickable sky map below shows the night sky looking northeast around midnight on January 4th, 2011, the peak of the Quadrantids meteor shower.”
Good luck with viewing these meteor showers! If you are able to capture one of these on a digital camera, please tell us by commenting at the bottom of this web page and then share them on MyCNYcentral.com. You can also e-mail us pictures to news@cnycentral.com or weather@cnycentral.com. We will be able to show them on air and online. Good luck with the viewing tonight!
For more on your weather forecast, click on "Weather" and then the "Live Triple Doppler Radar" tab on our weather page. Make sure you refresh the Doppler radar to see the very latest information, as well. Furthermore, we have our new Interactive Doppler Radar on our website. You can zoom down to street level with Interactive Doppler Radar. You are in total control of where the radar can zoom in. Give it a try. Plus, click on our Severe Weather Tab and our Watches and Warnings map to see the very latest county specific watches and warnings.In addition, you can "follow" along with me on Twitter by either clicking on the "follow" button on the Twitter section of our weather page or by visiting www.twitter.com/PeteWeatherBeat.
