The Perseid meteor shower peaks this weekend and it’s even better this year

The annual Perseid meteor bathe reaches its peak this weekend, sending brilliant trails of sunshine streaking throughout the evening sky.

With solely a sliver of moon within the sky, circumstances this yr will probably be perfect for seeing a number of meteors.

“Should you’ve received good clear climate and an excellent darkish sky, you exit simply earlier than daybreak and you may see a Perseid per minute or so,” stated NASA meteor scientist Invoice Cooke. “That is a reasonably good present.”

Here is watch the meteor shower:

WHAT ARE THE PERSEIDS?

The Perseids—one of many greatest meteor showers we are able to see—happen yearly within the late summer time. Meteor showers occur when the Earth strikes by fields of particles floating round in space. The Perseids come from comet Swift-Tuttle, a giant ball of ice and rock that sheds items of dusty particles because it orbits across the sun. When the Earth passes by, these bits get caught in our ambiance and deplete, creating the streaking lights. The Perseids get their title from the constellation Perseus, as a result of the meteors’ paths seem to start out out from this level within the sky.

WHEN IS THE SHOWER?

This yr’s bathe is already lively, however the primary occasion will probably be this weekend, when the bathe reaches its peak from Saturday evening into Sunday morning. Beginning round 11 p.m. native time Saturday, a number of meteors will begin to present up—perhaps one each quarter-hour, Cooke estimated. They’re going to hold choosing up the tempo till earlier than daybreak on Sunday, when “you may see meteors seem in all places,” he stated.

HOW CAN I SEE THEM?

Throughout this weekend’s peak, the moon will probably be a waning crescent—only a small slice within the sky. That is excellent news as a result of a brilliant moon could make it tougher to identify the meteors. Final yr, the moon was full through the peak. Anybody within the Northern Hemisphere may have an excellent view this yr, so long as the sky is obvious of sunshine air pollution and clouds. You do not want any gear to see them, however you will have to offer your eyes round half an hour to regulate to the darkish. Keep away from taking a look at your cellphone since that may smash your evening imaginative and prescient.

The Perseids can seem anyplace within the sky. So simply “lie in your again, look away from the moon and soak up as a lot sky as you may,” Cooke stated.

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