Share

Clear, dark skies forecasted for dazzling meteor shower tonight

This is the time of year that the Perseid meteor shower is considered the most spectacular and Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights are considered the best nights/mornings to look.

Advertisement

The good news is the Perseid meteor shower will be best viewed from the northern hemisphere.

This year is special because the Perseid shower coincides with the new moon, so debris won’t have to compete with moonlight. You can experience one meteor per minute at the peak of this episode of the meteor shower. Every August, the Earth moves through the debris field of the Swift-Tuttle comet (which orbits the sun once every 133 years).

If the clouds are too thick in your area or you couldn’t watch it, the next best time to see it is 9pm on Thursday.

While most of the shooting stars were faint and hard to see several bright fireballs were spotted from a rural St. Clair County location away from city lights.

“Wait until after midnight, go somewhere dark … then, just lie down and enjoy, just relax”, he said.

“Fortunately, in 2015, the waning crescent moon comes up shortly before sunrise, so you’re guaranteed of dark skies for this year’s Perseid meteor shower“. The comet debris enters Earth’s atmosphere at high speeds creating streaks of bright light as the small pieces burn up. Viewers should also avoid using binoculars and telescopes, as these make it more hard to catch sight of the quick-moving meteors.

How to Watch Meteor Shower? If you’re familiar with constellations, you’ll notice that they generally originate around Perseus (that’s how they got the name).

Advertisement

At the peak of the shower, there could be as many as 80 meteors per hour, USA Today noted.

Courtesy Denver Post