Going out in a blaze of glory

Cross your fingers for clear skies: Meteors ahead.

On the night of Nov. 17-18, a possibly strong Leonid meteor shower brews. With a night sky free of a hindering, bright moon and Earth's cosmic positioning, astronomers think many meteors will be visible in the hours after midnight.

Shooting stars occur when the Earth -- on its trek around the sun -- passes through the dusty trails left by comets. The remnant dust, as it strikes Earth's upper atmosphere, burns up and appears as shooting stars streaking through our heavens. Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle causes the Leonid meteors, and this year's show is courtesy of the comet's visits in 1466 and 1533, according to the International Meteor Organization (http://www.imo.net).

From shower to slight storm: The rate at peak viewing time could be more than 100 meteors an hour, but North America is not well placed for the peak, says the organization.

How do you find meteors? It's easy. Grab a Thermos full of hot cocoa, find a dark sky and look up. They appear to emanate from the constellation Leo, which ascends the eastern sky before midnight. Barring cloudy skies, they'll be around until the first signs of daybreak.

A look at the neighbors

Find Jupiter high in the south at nightfall and setting in the 11 p.m. hour. By late in the month, this very bright (negative 2.4 magnitude) object sets about 10 p.m. The reddish Mars ascends the east-northeastern heavens before midnight. You can follow our neighbor easily, since it has become a bright, near-zero-magnitude object.

Saturn, the ringed planet -- albeit with slightly flattened rings that are opening up -- rises about 3:30 a.m., loitering between the Leo and Virgo constellations. It is a first-magnitude object, not as bright as Jupiter and Mars right now, which could make it tougher to find in Washington's light-polluted sky.

In the east-southeastern sky, Venus rises just before the sun. Although it is a strong negative-third-magnitude object, it soon gets washed out by the rising sun.

Down-to-Earth events:

-- Nov. 2 -- Learn about Leonid meteors through "The Stars Tonight" at Arlington County's David M. Brown Planetarium, 1426 N. Quincy St., adjacent to Washington-Lee High School. Jonathan Harmon, planetarium director, hosts the presentation. $3 for adults, $2 for seniors and children. 7:30 p.m. For information, call 703-228-6070. http://www.apsva.us/planetarium.

-- Nov. 5 -- Max Mutchler of the Space Telescope Science Institute talks on the Hubble Space Telescope's observations at an open house at the University of Maryland Observatory, College Park. Afterward, see starry skies, weather permitting. 8 p.m. 301-405-6555; www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse.

-- Nov. 7 -- The winter constellations are beginning to emerge, so enjoy the last "Exploring the Sky" session of the season at Rock Creek Park, hosted by the National Park Service and the National Capital Astronomers. Meet near the Nature Center in the field south of Military and Glover roads NW. 7 p.m. 202-895-6070.

-- Nov. 13 -- "A Conversation with Alan Bean," Apollo 12 astronaut, at the Lockheed Martin Imax Theater, National Air and Space Museum. 8 p.m. Admission is free, tickets required. http://www.nasm.si.edu.