The Perseid Meteor Shower Will Be At Its Most Visible This Weekend
Every year, there are so many celestial events that take place that we can't even begin to count them all. Many happen in the farther reaches of space, seen only by high-powered telescopes maned by researchers, but for the rest of us, there are some that we can spot with out naked eye.
The biggest visible space event of the year is about to have its most active nights, and here's how you can catch all the action.
Look To The Skies
The year's best and biggest meteor shower will be hitting it's peak this upcoming weekend, making for a wonderful display of the universe's beauty that we can watch from home!
The Perseid meteor shower is often thought of as one of the best meteor showers to witness as it has very high meteor rates and it tends to take place in the late summertime, capitalizing on the perfect weather for stargazing.
Sailing Past
With a meteor falling roughly every minute, it's a real treat to witness!
This year's Perseid meteor shower will be peaking, meaning it will have its highest meteor rates and best visibility, the weekend of August 11th, 12th, and 13th, but mainly on the 12th.
"People in the U.S. can reasonably expect to see around 40 Perseids in the hour just before dawn on the peak nights. That's about one every couple of minutes, which is not bad," said Bill Cooke, head of NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office.
Hope For Clear Skies
"However, we are assuming you are out in the country, well away from cities and suburbs."
Brighter-lit areas should expect to see much less, closer to one meteor every 10 minutes.
The Perseid meteor shower is best seen in the Northern Hemisphere, and given the meteor rate, it's pretty easy to spot from just about anywhere so long as you have a clear sky and some patience. You don't even need to look in any set direction, they should be visible from anywhere!
Eyes Up
The Perseid meteor shower happens yearly because they appear to circle a point in the constellation Perseus, with each meteor having an extremely similar orbit. The point that meteors orbit around is called the radiant.
Why it becomes visible to us only for a certain time is because Earth passes through the debris in the trail of another comet, Swift-Tuttle. This year's Perseid meteor shower will also be easier to spot than last year's as last year's took place during a full moon, while there's only a waning crescent moon.
Here's hoping all who look for it get to spot some meteors as they fly past our planet, gracing our skies with their beauty.
