One of the best meteor showers peaks tonight but Toronto may not be able to see it. Here's why

One of the best meteor showers of the year reaches its peak tonight but Torontonians may not be able to view them easily if they look up at the night sky.

The Quadrantids, named after a now-defunct constellation – the Quadrans Muralis – now known as Bootes, can reach a peak of about 120 meteors per hour under perfect weather conditions. It is always the first meteor shower of the year, which CTV News’ Science and Technology expert Dan Riskin says is due to how Earth orbits the sun.

“When it gets to certain parts of that orbit, there tends to be dust in the air from [sic] space I guess from a comet or an asteroid or something that’s gone by, and every year, it goes through that same cloud,” Riskin told CP24 in an interview.

• Download our app to get local alerts on your device
• Get the latest local updates right to your inbox

“Here we are, we’re just hitting that pile of dust in the sky and our planet is going to pass through that this evening and there’s going to be a fabulous meteor show – it’s just that most of us will be below the clouds and unable to see it.”

According to Environment Canada, Toronto’s weather forecast is, unfortunately for stargazers, mainly cloudy with a few flurries anticipated to start in the evening and end overnight.

“Southern Ontario is not doing us any favours, and this is always a tricky one because it is always winter and Ontario in the winter tends to give us those clouds,” Riskin said. “So this is one that can be hard to see.”

On top of an obstructed view from the clouds, Riskin said the moon’s brightness can also impact the Quadrantids’ visibility.

“The other thing working against us right now, to make you feel a little better about the clouds, is that the Moon is about half-full, and so that amount of light sometimes blocks a lot of the meteor shower from being visible,” Riskin said.

But, while Torontonians may not be able to view the first meteor shower of 2024, those in the city will still be able to view a rare celestial event in the spring.

TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE COMING IN APRIL

On April 8, there will be a total solar eclipse viewable in Canada. The last time a total eclipse was visible in Canada was 2017.

“So the moon will totally block out the sun, but not quite in Toronto. It’ll be a total eclipse in Hamilton, it’ll be a total eclipse in Prince Edward County, it’ll be a total eclipse in lots of places, but if you’re in Toronto, unless you own a boat and you can get up in the middle of Lake Ontario, it’s not going to be a full eclipse,” Riskin said, adding there will be a “mad rush” to get out of the city on that day.

“It’s going to be one of the greatest moments of any of our lives.”