View source for Taurids

{{Short description|Annual meteor shower}}
{{Distinguish|Beta Taurids}}

{{Infobox meteor shower
| name               = Southern Taurids (STA)
| parent             = [[2P/Encke]]
<!-- Radiant -->
| constellation      = [[Taurus (constellation)|Taurus]]
| ra                 = {{RA|03|35}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| dec                = {{DEC|+14.4}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
<!-- Properties -->
| month              = {{Nowrap|Sep 23 – Dec 8}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| peak               = {{Nowrap|Nov 5}}
| velocity           = 27.7<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| zhr                = 5
}}

{{Infobox meteor shower
| name               = Northern Taurids (NTA)
| image              =
| caption            =
| pronounce          = 
| date               = 
| parent             = [[2004 TG10]]<ref name=Jenniskens>Meteor showers and their parent comets [https://books.google.com/books?id=QpajMuyXG8AC&pg=PA470&dq=TG10 pg 470] by [[Peter Jenniskens]]</ref><ref name=moore_rees2011>{{citation | first1=Patrick | last1=Moore | first2=Robin | last2=Rees | title=Patrick Moore's Data Book of Astronomy | edition=2nd | publisher=Cambridge University Press | date=2011 | isbn=978-0-521-89935-2 | page=275 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2FNfjWKBZx8C&pg=PA275 }}
</ref>
<!-- Radiant -->
| constellation      = [[Taurus (constellation)|Taurus]]
| ra                 = {{RA|03|55}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| dec                = {{DEC|+22.8}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
<!-- Properties -->
| month              = {{Nowrap|Oct 13 – Dec 2}}<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| peak               = Nov&nbsp;12
| velocity           = 29
| zhr                = 5<ref name="AMS-calendar"/>
| notes              = 
}}

The '''Taurids''' are an annual [[meteor shower]], associated with the [[comet Encke]]. The Taurids are actually two separate showers, with a Southern and a Northern component. The Southern Taurids originated from Comet Encke, while the Northern Taurids originated from the asteroid [[2004 TG10|2004 TG<sub>10</sub>]], possibly a large fragment of Encke due to its similar orbital parameters.<ref name="Taurids 2017">{{cite web|url=https://patch.com/us/across-america/taurids-meteor-shower-fireballs-peak-dates-what-expect|title=Taurids Meteor Shower Fireballs: Peak Dates, What To Expect|author=Beth Dalbey|date=24 October 2017|accessdate=11 November 2017}}</ref><ref name="Porubcan-2006" /> They are named after their [[Radiant (meteor shower)|radiant]] point in the constellation [[Taurus (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]] [[Meteoroid#Fireball|fireballs]]. Since 2P/Encke is such a short period comet, the meteors have the slowest impact speed of the annual well-known meteor showers.

Comet Encke and the Taurid complex are believed to be remnants of a disrupted 40-km-class comet from about 10,000 years ago,<ref name=Ye2022/><ref name=Babadzhanov2008/> breaking into several pieces and releasing material by normal [[Coma (cometary)|cometary activity]], mass loss via [[YORP effect|YORP]] spin-up,  or occasionally by close encounters with the [[tidal force]] of [[Earth]] or other planets ([[Fred Whipple|Whipple]], 1940; Klačka, 1999). In total, this [[Meteor shower#Origin of meteoroid streams|meteoroid stream]] is the largest in the inner [[Solar System]]. Since the stream is rather spread out in space, 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, [[pebble]]s instead of [[dust]] grains.<ref name="NASA2005"/> The daytime showers are active from May to July ([[Beta Taurids]] and [[Zeta Perseids]]), while the nighttime showers are active from September to December.

==Appearance==
Typically, Taurids appear at a rate of about 5 per hour, moving slowly across the sky at about 28 [[kilometers per second]] (17&nbsp;mi/s), or 100,800&nbsp;km/h (65,000&nbsp;mph).<ref name="NASA2005"/> If larger than a pebble, these meteors may become [[bolide]]s as bright as the Moon and leave behind smoke trails.<ref name="NASA2005"/>

Due to the gravitational [[Perturbation (astronomy)|perturbations]] of [[planet]]s, especially [[Jupiter]], the Taurids have spread out over time, allowing separate segments labeled the '''Northern Taurids''' (NTA) and '''Southern Taurids''' (STA) to become observable. The Southern Taurids are active from about September 23 to December 8,<ref name="AMS-calendar"/> while the Northern Taurids are active from about October 13 to December 2. Essentially these are two cross sections of a single, broad, continuous stream in space. The [[Beta Taurids]] and [[Zeta Perseids]], encountered by the Earth in June/July, are also cross sections of the stream that approach from the Earth's daytime side and, as such, cannot be observed visually in the way the (night-time) Northern and Southern Taurids of October/November can. Astronomers [[Duncan Steel]] and [[Bill Napier]] even suggest the Beta Taurids could be the cause of the [[Tunguska event]] of June 30, 1908.<ref name=NG>[https://web.archive.org/web/20040210135009/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/11/1107_031107_taurids.html Meteor Shower Promises Seven Shooting Stars an Hour] – [[National Geographic (magazine)|National Geographic]] News (November 7, 2003)</ref>

In 1962 and 1963, the [[Mars 1]] probe recorded one micrometeorite strike every two minutes at altitudes ranging from {{convert|6000|to|40000|km|mi|abbr=on}} from Earth's surface due to the Taurids meteor shower, and also recorded similar densities at distances from {{convert|20|to|40|e6km|e6mi|abbr=unit}} from Earth.<ref name='Sputnik 23'>{{cite web | url = http://jtgnew.sjrdesign.net/exploration_space_planetary_mars.html | title = "Journey Through the Galaxy" Mars Program: Mars ~ 1960-1974 | accessdate = 2014-01-26 | last = Robbins | first = Stuart | date = 2008 | publisher = SJR Design}}</ref><ref name='Mihos 2006'>{{cite web | url = http://burro.astr.cwru.edu/stu/advanced/20th_soviet_mars.html | title = Mars (1960-1974): Mars 1 | accessdate = 2014-01-26 | last = Mihos | first = Chris | date = 11 January 2006 | work = Department of Astronomy, Case Western Reserve University. | url-status = dead | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20131013211415/http://burro.astr.cwru.edu/stu/advanced/20th_soviet_mars.html | archivedate = 13 October 2013 }}</ref>

The Taurid stream has a cycle of activity that peaks roughly every 2,500 to 3,000 years,<ref name=NG/> when the core of the stream 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. The next peak is expected around 3000 [[anno domini|AD]].<ref name=NG/>

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

== Fireballs ==
Over Poland in 1995, all-sky cameras imaged an [[Absolute magnitude#Meteors|absolute magnitude]] –17 Taurid bolide that was estimated to be 900&nbsp;kg and perhaps a meter in diameter.<ref name=Jenniskens-pg467>Meteor showers and their parent comets [https://books.google.com/books?id=QpajMuyXG8AC&pg=PA467&dq=meter pg 467] by [[Peter Jenniskens]]</ref>

In 1993, it was predicted that there would be a swarm of activity in 2005.<ref name="NASA2005"/> Around Halloween in 2005, many fireballs were witnessed that affected people's night vision.<ref name="NASA2005"/> Astronomers have taken to calling these the "Halloween fireballs."<ref name="NASA2005"/> During the Southern Taurid meteor shower in 2013, fireball sightings were spotted over southern California, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah.<ref name="BSkyB">{{cite news |author=Sky News US Team |date=2013-11-07 |title=Meteor 'Fireball' Lights Up California Sky |url=http://news.sky.com/story/1165152/meteor-fireball-lights-up-california-sky |website=news.sky.com |location=London, UK |publisher=[[BSkyB]] |accessdate=2013-11-07}}</ref> A 2021 study by [[Ignacio Ramón Ferrín Vázquez|Ignacio Ferrín]] and Vincenzo Orofino catalogued 88 probable members of the swarm and showed that many such as the [[2212 Hephaistos]] group and the [[169P/NEAT]] group exhibit cometary activity.<ref>{{Cite Q |Q108888402 |last=Ferrín |first=Ignacio |last2=Orofino |author-link=Ignacio Ramón Ferrín Vázquez |first2=Vincenzo |quote=Using the Secular Light Curve (SLC) formalism (Ferrín, 2010), we have catalogued 88 probable members of the Taurid Complex (TC). ... This high percentage of active asteroids gives support to the hypothesis of a catastrophe that took place during the Upper Paleolithic (Clube and Napier, 1984).}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Romero |first=James |date=2021-09-30 |title=Swarm of Near-Earth Comets Linked to Recent Ice Giant Breakup |work=[[Discover (magazine)|Discover]] |url=https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/swarm-of-near-earth-comets-linked-to-recent-ice-giant-breakup |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=2021-10-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211014114305/https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/swarm-of-near-earth-comets-linked-to-recent-ice-giant-breakup |archive-date=2021-10-14 |quote=Together, their orbital analysis of bodies increased the complex’s membership from half a dozen to 88. ... The findings are welcomed by those who believe Comet Encke and the other products of this astronomical event are responsible for many of Earth's most violent and consequential impacts over the last 20,000 years.}}</ref>

[[File:Tauride-20201204.jpg|thumb|Northern Taurid bolide photographed from Skibotn, Norway December 4, 2020 14:30 CET.<ref name="taurid-20201204">{{cite news |author=Norsk meteornettverk |date=2020-12-04 |title=Flott nordlig tauride sett i Troms og Finnmark. |url=http://norskmeteornettverk.no/wordpress/?p=3202|website=norskmeteornettverk.no |accessdate=2020-12-06}}</ref>]]

On November 11, 2019, a Taurid fireball was seen over [[St. Louis, MO]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bing.com/videos/search?view=detail&mid=3A37A8072813B5B2F4F03A37A8072813B5B2F4F0&shtp=GetUrl&shid=d4a2c564-8106-413b-8aef-2c347cc58fd8&shtk=V0FUQ0ggTWV0ZW9yIHN0cmlrZSBFYXJ0aCBhcyBzcGFjZSByb2NrIGxpZ2h0cyB1cCBza3kgYmVmb3JlIGV4cGxvZGluZyBvdmVyIE1pc3NvdXJp&shdk=QSBNRVRFT1IgZXhwbG9kZWQgb3ZlciBza2llcyBpbiBTdCBMb3VpcywgTWlzc291cmkgbGFzdCBuaWdodCBhcyBhIGZsYXNoIG9mIGxpZ2h0IGFuZCBsb3VkIG5vaXNlIHdhcyByZXBvcnRlZCBieSByZXNpZGVudHMu&shhk=LnLadJ0iFasmHrmrxlGqi0Kai1I9VWg3veJd3sEIWQA%3D&form=VDSHOT&shth=OSH.A9qzZuMgI44I7w5VWUiOCA|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112132531/https://www.bing.com/videos/search?view=detail&mid=3A37A8072813B5B2F4F03A37A8072813B5B2F4F0&shtp=GetUrl&shid=d4a2c564-8106-413b-8aef-2c347cc58fd8&shtk=V0FUQ0ggTWV0ZW9yIHN0cmlrZSBFYXJ0aCBhcyBzcGFjZSByb2NrIGxpZ2h0cyB1cCBza3kgYmVmb3JlIGV4cGxvZGluZyBvdmVyIE1pc3NvdXJp&shdk=QSBNRVRFT1IgZXhwbG9kZWQgb3ZlciBza2llcyBpbiBTdCBMb3VpcywgTWlzc291cmkgbGFzdCBuaWdodCBhcyBhIGZsYXNoIG9mIGxpZ2h0IGFuZCBsb3VkIG5vaXNlIHdhcyByZXBvcnRlZCBieSByZXNpZGVudHMu&shhk=LnLadJ0iFasmHrmrxlGqi0Kai1I9VWg3veJd3sEIWQA%3D&form=VDSHOT&shth=OSH.A9qzZuMgI44I7w5VWUiOCA|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 12, 2019|title=Bing video|website=www.bing.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Perlerin |first1=Vincent |title=Fireball spotted over Missouri on Nov. 11th, 2019 |url=https://www.amsmeteors.org/2019/11/fireball-spotted-over-missouri-on-nov-11th-2019/ |website=American Meteor Society |access-date=18 September 2022 |date=12 Nov 2019}}</ref>

== Meteor impact on the Moon ==
A brief flash of light from a [[moon|lunar]] [[impact event]] was recorded by [[NASA]] scientist [[Rob Suggs]] and astronomer Bill Cooke on November 7, 2005, while testing a new 250&nbsp;mm (10&nbsp;in) telescope and video camera they had built to monitor the Moon for meteor strikes.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4570730.stm BBC News: Nasa team sees explosion on Moon] (3 January 2006)</ref> After consulting [[star chart]]s, they concluded that the impact body was likely part of the Taurid meteor shower. This may be the first photographic record of such a strike, which some witnesses claim to have visually observed on rare occasions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news118.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010422114033/http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news118.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2001-04-22|title=An Eyewitness Impact Debunked}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist
| refs =
<ref name="Porubcan-2006">{{Cite journal
  |first1     = V. |last1 = Porubčan
  |first2     = L. |last2 = Kornoš
  |first3     = I. P. |last3 = Williams
  |date       = June 2006
  |title      = The Taurid complex meteor showers and asteroids
  |url        = http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?bibcode=2006CoSka..36..103P
  |journal    = Contributions of the Astronomical Observatory Skalnaté Pleso
  |volume     = 36 
  |issue = 2
  |pages      = 103–117
  |bibcode    = 2006CoSka..36..103P
  |arxiv      = 0905.1639
  |access-date= 29 July 2017}}</ref>

<ref name="NASA2005">{{cite web
  |date=2005-11-03
  |title=Earth is orbiting through a swarm of space debris that may be producing an unusual number of nighttime fireballs
  |publisher=NASA Science News
  |author=Dr. Tony Phillips
  |url=https://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2005/03nov_taurids/}}</ref>

<ref name="AMS-calendar">{{cite web
  |title=Meteor Shower Calendar 2022-2023
  |publisher=[[American Meteor Society]] (AMS)
  |url=https://www.amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers/meteor-shower-calendar/#Southern+Taurids
  |accessdate=2023-09-09}}</ref>

<ref name=Babadzhanov2008>{{cite journal
  |last1=Babadzhanov |first1=P. B.
  |last2=Williams |first2=I. P.
  |last3=Kokhirova |first3=G. I.
  |title=Near-Earth Objects in the Taurid complex
  |journal=[[Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society]]
  |volume=386 |issue=3 |pages=1436–1442 |year=2008
  |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.13096.x|bibcode = 2008MNRAS.386.1436B |doi-access=free}}</ref>

<ref name=Ye2022>{{cite arXiv
  |last1=Ye |first1=Quanzhi
  |last2=Jenniskens |first2=Peter |authorlink2=Peter Jenniskens
  |title=Comets and meteor showers
  |year=2022
  |class=astro-ph.EP
 |eprint=2209.10654
}}</ref>

}} <!-- end of reflist -->

==Further reading==
* Klačka, Jozef (1999). "Meteor Streams of Comet Encke. Taurid Meteor Complex". [https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/9910045 Abstract]
* Whipple, F.L. (1940). "Photographic meteor studies. III. The Taurid shower." ''Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc.,'' '''83,''' 711–745.

== External links ==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20081112052405/http://www.realclearwx.com/1108meteors.htm November 2008 Taurid Meteor Fireballs]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071110000103/http://starrymirror.com/tauridsnov5.htm Taurid Meteors To Peak Monday]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060627142813/http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2005/03nov_taurids.htm?list37415 Fireball Sightings] – [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration|NASA]]
* [http://abob.libs.uga.edu/bobk/taurid.html Scientific articles pertaining to the Taurid complex]
* [http://www.imo.net/calendar/2012#nta Northern Taurids (NTA) for 2012] (Maximum: November 12; [[Zenithal Hourly Rate|ZHR]] = 5; V = 29&nbsp;km/s)
* [http://www.imo.net/calendar/2012#sta Southern Taurids (STA) for 2012] (Maximum: October 10; ZHR = 5; V = 27&nbsp;km/s)

{{Meteor showers}}

[[Category:Meteor showers]]
[[Category:September events]]
[[Category:October events]]
[[Category:November events]]