Leonid meteor shower of 1966, a peak year for this active yearly shower. This picture was taken on November 18th, 1966, from the Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Arizona. In 1966, a spectacular storm was seen over the Americas. Historical notes were gathered thus noting the Leonids back to 900AD. Radar studies showed the 1966 storm included a relatively high percentage of smaller particles while 1965's lower activity had a much higher proportion of larger particles. The Leonids are famous because their meteor showers, or storms, can be among the most spectacular. They have had a major effect on the development of the scientific study of meteors which had previously been thought to be atmospheric phenomena. The meteor storm of 1833 was of truly superlative strength. The Leonid meteor shower peaks around November 17 of each year. Approximately every 33 years, the Leonid shower produces a meteor storm, peaking at rates of thousands of meteors per hour. Leonid storms gave birth to the term meteor shower when it was first realized, during the November 1833 storm, that the meteors radiated from near the star Gamma Leonis.