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Meteor shower on tap this weekend
By dtewes in Sky Watch
October 17, 2007

   If you're looking for something to keep you entertained this weekend, consider spending time in the backyard watching the annual Orionid meteor shower. Some are predicting as many as 20 meteors per hour at the maximum.
   The Orionids generally begin on Oct. 15 and end on Oct. 29, with a peak generally occurring during the morning hours of Oct. 20 to 22, according to meteorshowersonline.com. And if the weather forecasters are right, the observing conditions won't be bad. The sky Friday and Saturday should range from mostly clear to partly cloudy.
   The meteor shower is a result of the Earth passing through a dust trail created by Halley's Comet. So some of the meteors are no larger than a grain of sand, although they are still visible as they heat up while passing through the atmosphere.
    For more details, including where to look in the sky, go online to:
http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/our_solar_system/meteors/orionid_shower.html