The Volantids meteor shower
Key facts
- Peak
- around 31 December to 1 January, in active years
- Active
- late December to early January, in active years
- Rate at peak (ZHR)
- low; notable activity in 2015 and 2020
- Speed
- about 30 km/s
- Radiant
- Volans (the Flying Fish, near the south celestial pole)
- Parent body
- Unknown
Dates shift slightly from year to year. This year's peak is in the events calendar.
The Volantids are a southern hemisphere shower discovered on New Year's Eve 2015, a reminder that new showers can still be found by anyone with patience and the right equipment.
Discovery. On 31 December 2015, two video camera stations in New Zealand, run by amateur astronomers as part of an international network that measures meteor orbits, recorded a burst of meteors from Volans, a small constellation near the south celestial pole. About one in three meteors that night belonged to the new shower, and it peaked around the time of local New Year celebrations. Meteor radars in Australia and Antarctica also detected it. Nothing had been seen in previous years, and older radar records showed no sign of it.
The shower appeared again in late December 2020, when camera networks in New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Namibia and Chile recorded a return. It was not seen in the years between.
The parent. The orbits are fairly steeply tilted, resembling those of some Jupiter-family comets. No parent has been found; it may now be a dormant comet that releases little gas or dust, which would make it hard to spot. Researchers suggested that planetary gravity briefly pushed the dust stream into Earth's path.
The radiant. Volans, the Flying Fish, lies between the Large Magellanic Cloud and the stars of Carina, close to the south celestial pole. From southern temperate latitudes it never sets.
What to expect. In most years, nothing. In active years, a few medium-speed meteors an hour, entering the atmosphere at about 30 kilometres per second.
Viewing. The radiant is so far south that the shower is invisible from the UK, Europe and North America. From New Zealand, Australia, southern Africa and southern South America it is up all night. A clear New Year's Eve is the ideal time to watch.
Viewing tips
- Watch from the southern hemisphere on New Year's Eve and the nights around it.
- Find the Large Magellanic Cloud and look towards Carina for Volans.
- Run a meteor camera, which is how this shower was discovered.
- Record times carefully, as activity may last only a night or two.
- Step away from fireworks and town lights for a dark sky.