The Taurids are an annual meteor shower associated with the comet Encke. They are named after their radiant point in the constellation Taurus, where they are seen to come from in the sky. Because of their occurrence in late October and early November, they are also called Halloween fireballs. Leonid Meteor Shower // [edit] Overview A meteor shower, also known as a meteor storm, is a celestial event where a large number of meteors are seen within a very short period of time. ... Comet Hale-Bopp For other uses, see Comet (disambiguation). ... Comet Encke (officially designated 2P/Encke) is a periodic comet, named after Johann Franz Encke, who through laborious study of its orbit and many calculations was able to link multiple observations in 1786 (2P/1786 B1), 1795 (2P/1795 V1), 1805 (2P/1805 U1) and 1818 (2P/1818 W1) to... The radiant or apparent radiant of a meteor shower is the point in the sky that (to a planetary observer) meteors appear to originate from. ... For other uses of the word Taurus see Taurus. ... Halloween (IPA pronunciation: ) is an observance celebrated on the night of October 31, most notably by children dressing in costumes and going door-to-door collecting sweets. ... Look up fireball in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Encke and the Taurids are believed to be remnants of a much larger comet, which has disintegrated over the past 20,000 to 30,000 years, breaking into several pieces and releasing material by normal cometary activity or perhaps occasionally by close encounters with the gravitational field of Earth or other planets (Whipple, 1940; Klačka, 1999). In total, this stream of matter is the largest in the inner solar system. Due to the stream's size, the Earth takes several weeks to pass through it, causing an extended period of meteor activity, compared with the much smaller periods of activity in other showers. The Taurids are also made up of weightier material, pebbles instead of dust grains. The gravitational field is a field that causes bodies with mass to attract each other. ... Earth (IPA: , often referred to as the Earth, Terra, or Planet Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth largest. ... Fred Lawrence Whipple (November 5, 1906–August 30, 2004) was an American astronomer. ... Major features of the Solar System (not to scale): The Sun, the eight planets, the asteroid belt containing the dwarf planet Ceres, outermost there is the dwarf planet Pluto (the dwarf planet Eris not shown), and a comet. ... Pebbles A pebble is a rock with a size of 4 to 75 millimeters (some say 64 millimeters). ... After just three years of use dust has blocked this laptop heat sink, making the computer unusable Dust is a general name for minute solid particles with diameter less than 500 micrometers (otherwise see sand or granulates) and, more generally, for finely divided matter. ...

Typically, Taurids appear at a rate of about 7 per hour, moving slowly across the sky at about 17 miles per second (27 kilometers per second), or 65,000 miles per hour. If large enough, these meteors may become bolides, with spectacular light shows and even audible sound. Miles per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of international miles covered per hour. ... kilometre per second is an SI derived unit of both speed (scalar) and velocity (vector), signified by the symbol km/s or km s-1. ... Miles per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of international miles covered per hour. ... The term bolide (from the Greek βολις, bolis, missile) can refer to either an extraterrestrial body that collides with the Earth, or to an exceptionally bright, fireball-like meteor regardless of whether it ultimately impacts the surface. ...

Due to the gravitational effect of planets, especially Jupiter, the Taurids have spread out over time, allowing separate segments labeled the Northern Taurids and Southern Taurids to become observable. Essentially these are two cross sections of a single, broad, continuous stream in space. The Beta Taurids, encountered by the Earth in June/July and which many astronomers consider the cause of the Tunguska event, are also a cross section of the stream. Beta Taurids approach from the Earth's daytime side; so cannot be observed visually in the way the (night-time) Northern and Southern Taurids of October/November can. The eight planets and three dwarf planets of our Solar System, alongside the Sun. ... Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 70 kPa Hydrogen ~86% Helium ~14% Methane 0. ... The Beta Taurids are an annual meteor shower belonging to a class of daytime showers that peak after sunrise. ... Trees felled by the Tunguska blast. ...

The Taurid stream has a cycle of activity that peaks roughly every 2500 to 3000 years, when its core passes nearer to Earth and produces more intense showers. In fact, because of the separate "branches" (night-time in one part of the year and daytime in another; and Northern/Southern in each case) there are two (possibly overlapping) peaks separated by a few centuries, every 3000 years. Some astronomers note that dates for megalith structures such as Stonehenge are associated with these peaks. Megalithic tomb, Mane Braz, Brittany Bronze age wedge tomb in the Burren area of Ireland A megalith is a large stone which has been used to construct a structure or monument either alone or with other stones. ... Stonehenge in 2004 For other meanings of Stonehenge, see: Stonehenge (disambiguation) Stonehenge is a Neolithic and Bronze Age megalithic monument located near Amesbury in the English county of Wiltshire, about 8 miles (13 km) north of Salisbury. ...

The next peak is expected around 3000 AD, suggesting that the Taurids may also be responsible for the Star of Bethlehem. It has been suggested that in 1 AD, there were Taurid meteor showers due to the Encke tail encountering Earth and breaking up [1]. Dionysius Exiguus invented Anno Domini years to date Easter. ... Adoration of the Magi, with the star of Bethlehem in the top left. ... This article is about the year. ...

The Taurids also have more frequent peaks which may result from a heavier concentration of material in the stream, which only hits Earth during some passes.

Some consider the Bronze Age breakup of the originally larger comet to be responsible for ancient destruction in the Fertile Crescent, perhaps evidenced by a large meteor crater in Iraq. The origin of the swastika has also been connected with Comet Encke. The Fertile Crescent is a historical region in the Middle East incorporating Ancient Egypt, the Levant, and Mesopotamia. ... Photo of a burst of meteors with extended exposure time A meteor is the visible path of a meteoroid that enters the Earths (or another bodys) atmosphere, commonly called a shooting star or falling star. ... A right-facing Swastika in decorative Hindu form For the town in Ontario, see Swastika, Ontario. ...

Meteor impact on the Moon

An impact event was observed by NASA scientist Rob Suggs and astronomer Bill Cooke while testing out a new 10-in telescope and video camera they had assembled to monitor the moon for meteor strikes [2]. After consulting star charts they concluded that the impact body was probably part of the Taurid meteor shower. This may well be the first recording of this type of lunar event which some have claimed to have witnessed in the past. See [3]. Bulk composition of the Moons mantle and crust estimated, weight percent Oxygen 42. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... NASA logo Listen to this article · (info) This audio file was created from an article revision dated 2005-09-01, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. ... Photo of a burst of meteors with extended exposure time A meteor is the visible path of a meteoroid that enters the Earths (or another bodys) atmosphere, commonly called a shooting star or falling star. ... A star chart is a map of the night sky. ... Lunar may refer to: an adjective that means having to do with or pertaining to the Moon, or to moons in general. ...

Taurids and UFOs

During the week ending November 4, 2005, the large number of fireballs seen all over the world led some to suggest UFO visitations. These fireballs may have been space junk or the Taurids [4]. November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 57 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... UFO can mean: Unidentified flying object United Future Organization, a Japanese-Brazilian electronic jazz band UFO, the rock band that previously featured Michael Schenker UFO, the Gerry Anderson TV series United Farmers of Ontario, a political party that formed the government in Ontario from 1919 to 1923 U.F.O... Space Debris Space debris or orbital debris, also called space junk, are the objects in orbit around Earth created by man that no longer serve any useful purpose. ...

References

• Klačka, Jozef (1999). "Meteor Streams of Comet Encke. Taurid Meteor Complex". Abstract

• Whipple, F.L. (1940). "Photographic meteor studies. III. The Taurid shower."

Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., 83, 711-745.

External links

• Meteor Shower Promises Seven Shooting Stars an Hour - National Geographic News
• Fireball Sightings - NASA
• CNN
• "NASA team sees explosion on Moon"
• Natural Catastrophes during Bronze Age Civilisations Archaeological, Geological and Astronomical Perspectives
• Introduction and background to the conference
• Abstract by Bill Napier (Armagh Observatory) COMETARY CATASTROPHES, COSMIC DUST AND ECOLOGICAL DISASTERS IN HISTORICAL TIMES: THE ASTRONOMICAL FRAMEWORK
• Scientific articles pertaining to the Taurid complex