Perseid Meteor Shower

[DecimusCaesar]

I wanted to see the Meteor shower too, though sadly the weather wouldn't permit it. I enjoy stargazing as well, and I've had a fondness for astronomy since I was very young. Too bad the weather hasn't allowed us the chance to see anything.

[Faustus]

I wanted to see the Meteor shower too, though sadly the weather wouldn't permit it. I enjoy stargazing as well, and I've had a fondness for astronomy since I was very young. Too bad the weather hasn't allowed us the chance to see anything.

Here we are again a year later. The most famous meteor shower of all

peaks the morning of Tuesday August 12. And here's where to look:

The "radiant" is in the North East and just above Capella (in Auriga which

looks like a house resting on its side) which is the first 1st magnitude star

nearest the pole-star. The Pleiades "asterism" will be further to the right.

 

The Perseids result when Earth runs into debris ejected over the eons by Comet Swift-Tuttle. Under ideal conditions, you may catch up to 90 meteors per hour at its peak. (If it's cloudy the morning of August 12, there may be a good show a day or two before and after.) Viewers can expect to see 60 to 90 meteors per hour under a dark sky after the Moon sets at 1:30 in the early morning, with some of the less spectacular ones not being visible earlier, but the viewing won

[Ursus]

Thanks for the reminder, Faustus.

 

Unfortunately it has been very cloudy and rainy in my neck of the woods all summer. I think I will miss it another year.

[ASCLEPIADES]

Salve, Amici

Thanks for the reminder, Faustus.

 

Unfortunately it has been very cloudy and rainy in my neck of the woods all summer. I think I will miss it another year.

Just in case you eventually decide to give it a try, here comes an extract from the NASA website on the Perseid shower of 2008:

 

"Serious meteor hunters will begin their watch early, on Monday evening, August 11th, around 9 pm when Perseus first rises in the northeast. This is the time to look for Perseid Earthgrazers--meteors that approach from the horizon and skim the atmosphere overhead like a stone skipping across the surface of a pond.

 

"Earthgrazers are long, slow and colorful; they are among the most beautiful of meteors," says Cooke. He cautions that an hour of watching may net only a few of these at most, but seeing even one can make the whole night worthwhile.

 

A warm summer night. Bright meteors skipping overhead. And the peak is yet to come. What could be better?

 

The answer lies halfway up the southern sky: Jupiter and the gibbous Moon converge on August 11th and 12th for a close encounter in the constellation Sagittarius: sky map. It's a grand sight visible even from light-polluted cities.

 

For a while the beautiful Moon will interfere with the Perseids, lunar glare wiping out all but the brightest meteors. Yin-yang. The situation reverses itself at 2 am on Tuesday morning, August 12th, when the Moon sets and leaves behind a dark sky for the Perseids. The shower will surge into the darkness, peppering the sky with dozens and perhaps hundreds of meteors until dawn.

 

For maximum effect, "get away from city lights," Cooke advises. The brightest Perseids can be seen from cities, he allows, but the greater flurry of faint, delicate meteors is visible only from the countryside. (Scouts, this is a good time to go camping.)

 

The Perseids are coming. Enjoy the show!"

[Northern Neil]

For maximum effect, "get away from city lights," Cooke advises. The brightest Perseids can be seen from cities, he allows, but the greater flurry of faint, delicate meteors is visible only from the countryside. (Scouts, this is a good time to go camping.)

 

The Perseids are coming. Enjoy the show!"

What joy! The weather is good here, and I have two days off. A camping I will go!!