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Taurids
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Taurids
Parent body
2P/Encke
Radiant
Constellation
Taurus
Properties
Occurs during
Southern: Sep 10 – Nov 20
Northern: Oct 20 – Dec 10
Date of peak
Southern: Oct 10
Northern: Nov 12
Velocity
28 km/s
Zenithal hourly rate
5
See also: List of meteor showers
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.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 tidal force of Earth or other planets (Whipple, 1940; Klacka, 1999). In total, this stream of matter is the largest in the inner solar system. Since the meteor 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, pebbles instead of dust grains.
^ Cite error: The named reference NASA2005 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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