Lyrids

Lyrids

(lÿ -ridz) (April Lyrids) A minor meteor shower, radiant: RA 272°, dec +32°, that maximizes on April 21. In the past it was much more active, the last great Lyrid shower occurring in 1803. Observations of Lyrids have been traced back 2500 years, Chinese observers describing a remarkable display in 15 bc. The associated meteoroid stream has the same orbit as comet Thatcher (1861 I). See also June Lyrids.

Collins Dictionary of Astronomy © Market House Books Ltd, 2006

Lyrids

[′lī·rədz]

(astronomy)

An important meteor shower occurring about April 22; it is regular and predictable, but not heavy, the hourly rate usually being about 7-10.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Lyrids

 

a meteor stream with the radiant in the constellation Lyra. The stream is observed about April 21 and is associated with comet 1861 I. Known for more than 2,500 years, it is sometimes observed in the form of abundant meteor showers. Since 1803 it has usually had few meteors, although in 1922 and 1958 significant short-term increases in the number of meteors were noted.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.