(--A Perseid fireball photographed August 12, 2006, by Pierre Martin of Arnprior, Ontario, Canada.)
On Sunday, August 12, the yearly light show that is the Perseid meteor shower will be at its peak. This is the one time of year when you can see many--even DOZENS--of meteors every hour. Estimates are you will be able to see one or two 'falling stars' per minute. The added bonus this year: the moon will be in its 'new' phase, so there will be no moonlight to detract from being able to see the shower.
The source of the shower is Comet Swift-Tuttle. When the Earth and the comet's tail intersect, any small bit of dust that hits the atmosphere will create a streak of light, or 'falling star.' The show begins around 9PM and the amount of meteors increase until just before dawn on Monday morning when you could see one or more per minute.
The youngest daughter and I watched this wonderful show many, many times. It is something you definitely cannot miss--and you will never forget. While the best viewing is on the 12th, there should be an increase in meteors already and should continue for a few days after Sunday. Of course, it is best to look up when you are away from city lights, but we were able to see quite clearly here in our town. We don't rival New York City in terms of lights, but we DO have a streetlight across the street from us and we had a wonderful show to watch. So, circle your calendar now and make it a point to watch the sky on Sunday!
For more on the shower from NASA, go here. The Wikipedia article on the Perseids is here.
I'm going down the road and parking my truck in the field to watch- this is after I cover myself in bug spray and pray to God I don't miss any part of my body!
ReplyDeleteOh, COOL! Thanks for sharing. We live in the country and this is exactly why we didn't put in a yard light - we want to be able to SEE the sky!
ReplyDeleteYou shouldn't be disappointed! Enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI saw one last night here, I was outside at 10.25 pm waiting to see the Space Station, and the Shuttle going over, and just a minute or so before, there was a beatiful show to the WSW low in the sky. I'm looking forward to Sunday night to see this, never seen anything like it before. Just keeping fingers crossed that we dont have the usual cloud and rain here.
ReplyDeleteThats a GREAT picture! WOW! I never saw anything like this! You are so lucky.
ReplyDeletejan: I'm keeping the fingers crossed for you! Just keep thinking 'no clouds, no clouds.' Hey, it can't hurt and just might help! :)
ReplyDeletemeleah: I just was out for a few minutes tonight and saw a 'falling star' that looked very much like the picture. Hopefully, my husband will stand outside with me tomorrow night for a while so we can watch. (I don't like being out by myself--too many bats, skunks and raccoons around! :))
Wouldn't you know it, I was all prepared to watch last night and it was CLOUDY! Dangit.
ReplyDeletesue: Maybe you'll have better luck tonight! I'm going to continue for the next few nights--there will be less and less each night, but still more traffic than usual. I hope! :)
ReplyDelete