The cometary crumbs that create Leonid meteors are traveling together through space, along the orbit of Comet Tempel-Tuttle. So even though they can appear anywhere in the sky, they all seem to emanate from a spot in the constellation Leo. But in mid-November this constellation does not rise above the horizon until about midnight (this view is for 1 a.m. local time), so large numbers of meteors will not be seen until Leo rises. Click on the image to download a publication-quality version (102-kilobyte JPEG) by FTP.

This artwork by Shigemi Numazawa shows how the 33-year-long orbit of Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle intersects the plane of the inner solar system. Earth comes very near the comet's path once each year, in mid-November, at which time we see many Leonid meteors in the sky. The meteor shower intensifies in the years just after the comet comes closest to the Sun, shedding large amounts of ice and dust (which last occurred in 1998). Click on the image to download a publication-quality version (714-kilobyte JPEG) by FTP.

On the morning of November 17, 1966, skywatchers in western North America were spellbound by an awesome flood of Leonid meteors peaking around 5 a.m. Mountain Standard Time. It was probably the greatest meteor shower of the 20th century. At New Mexico State University Observatory, A. Scott Murrell used a camera tracking the stars to capture this 10- to 12-minute exposure with a 50-mm f/1.9 lens and Kodak Tri-X (ISO 400) film. The bowl of the Little Dipper is at bottom. Click on the image to download a publication-quality version (6.2-megabyte TIFF) by FTP.

As it nears the Sun every 33 years, the icy nucleus of Comet Tempel-Tuttle ejects a flurry of small particles, which spread out along its orbit over time. Earth crosses this stream of comet crumbs every November, creating a 'shower' — and rarely a 'storm' — of meteors in our atmosphere. These frames come from an animation; click on the image to download a broadcast-quality version (111-megabyte QuickTime movie) by FTP.

Simulation of a rich Leonid meteor shower as seen in a light-polluted night sky in a moonlit and/or heavily populated area. Only a few bright meteors show through; the faint ones are hidden by skyglow. The video illustrates how all members of the shower appear to radiate from the same direction in the sky (in the constellation Leo). Click on the image to download a broadcast-quality animation (107-megabyte QuickTime movie) by FTP.