The estimated total hourly meteor rates for evening observers this week is near 3 as seen from mid-northern latitudes (45N) and 2 as seen from tropical southern locations (25S). For morning observers the estimated total hourly rates should be near 15...
During this period the moon will reach its first quarter phase on Sunday November 26th. At this time the half-illuminated moon will lie 90 degrees east of the sun and will set near 2300 (11pm) local standard time (LST). The moon will interfere with evening observing but will set before the more active morning hours arrive. Toward the end of this period the waxing gibbous moon will remain in the sky most of the night, obscuring all but the brighter meteors.
During this period the moon will reach its new phase on Saturday November 18th. At this time the moon will lie near the sun and will be invisible at night. Next week the waxing crescent moon will enter the evening sky but will not interfere with meteor observing.
The AMS has received over 1320 fireball reports about 4 different events that occurred over the US, France and Germany. Two events can linked to the Taurid meteor shower.
The AMS has received over 200 reports so far about of a fireball event seen above NY State on November 11th, 2017 around 09:20pm EST (02:20 Universal Time). The fireball was seen primarily from New York and Pennsylvania but was also seen from Michigan, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, Ohio, Massachusetts, Delaware, Connecticut, West Virginia, Vermont and Ontario and Québec (Canada).
During this period the moon will reach its last quarter phase on Saturday November 11th. At this time the half-illuminated moon will rise near midnight local standard time (LST) and will remain above the horizon the remainder of the night. The moon will be bright but successful meteor watches can be conducted if you face away from the lunar glare. Viewing circumstances improve with each passing night as the moon's phase wanes and it rises later in the morning.
Since 2011, the American Meteor Society (AMS) online fireball report form has been translated in 30 different languages. We now receive thousands of reports from all around the world. Lately, we received more than 120 reports about a Fireball event that occurred over South East of France (Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur) on October, 30th.
As the week progresses the evening hours become more favorable for viewing as the moon rises later in the night. Unfortunately the evening hours are usually slow with rates rarely surpassing 5 per hour. This is a good time to try an catch a bright Taurid meteor or perhaps a rare Andromedid!
American Meteor Society