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How many meteors can be seen on a clear night outside bright cities?
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Meteor and meteoroid
The Cabin Creek meteorite, an iron (nickel-iron alloy) meteorite that was observed to fall in northwestern Arkansas on March 27, 1886. Its characteristic pattern of “thumbprint” dimples, or regmaglypts, is the result of melting and consequent ablation of its surface as it traveled through the atmosphere. The meteorite is likely a fragment of one of the M class asteroids, which show significant nickel-iron in their surface material.
On any clear night, when you are positioned far away from the bright lights of cities, you can typically see several meteors per hour with the naked eye. These sporadic meteors, which do not belong to a specific meteor shower, occur consistently throughout the year.1
During a meteor shower, this hourly rate often increases to approximately 10 to 50 meteors per hour.2