Ursids

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A meteor shower radiating from the constellation associated with bears, occurring annually around late December and visible in the northern sky
2. An astronomical event featuring meteors that appear to originate from a specific constellation linked to bear imagery, notable for its wintertime occurrence
3. A recurring celestial phenomenon where shooting stars seem to emerge from a bear-themed star pattern in the night sky during the closing month of the year

Etymology: "Ursids" is the plural of "ursid," which is a noun naming a member of the bear family, Ursidae. The name of the meteor shower is therefore a bear-family term, and it refers to the constellation Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, which contains the star Polaris and the radiant from which the shower appears to spread. The plural form is used because the shower is named after the group of bear-related stars and figures rather than a single animal. Ursidae is the scientific family name for bears, built from Latin "ursus," meaning "bear," with the Latin suffix "-idae" marking a biological family. Both the Latin root and the family suffix are standard in taxonomic naming, which is why the word sounds technical rather than everyday.

Synonyms: bears, bear family