For stargazers experiencing cloudy or light-polluted skies (like us), a live broadcast of the Perseid meteor shower will be available via Ustream overnight on August 11-12 and August 13-14, beginning at 9 p.m. CT.
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But for those who can’t escape the glare of light pollution, NASA will be streaming the event starting at 10 p.m. ET on Ustream on the evenings of August 11, 12 and 13.
This is one of the best meteor showers to observe and the Perseids are famous for producing a large number of bright meteors.
It is left in the wake of the Swift-Tuttle meteor’s orbit around the sun and The Earth passes through this debris every summer giving rise to a spectacle of shooting stars. Every piece of the meteor is a small chunk of the comet, which disintegrates into small flashes of light when they enter Earth’s atmosphere. However, there is a reason for this year’s “outburst” in meteor activity.
On a great night, under peak viewing conditions, skywatchers can typically see 60 to 90 Perseids per hour.
It is the first time this has happened since 2009.
NASA says Earth may be in for a closer encounter than usual this year.
NASA experts predict bursts of meteors falling from the sky at a rate of between 150 and 200 per hour on Thursday and into Friday.
If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see two or three meteors every minute.
Mr Moore said the spectacular meteor shower will be visible from 10pm on Thursday until 4am on Friday morning, although it may continue for several nights afterwards.
“Forecasters are predicting a Perseids outburst this year with double normal rates on the night of August 11-12”, Bill Cooke of NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office in Huntsville, Alabama, said in a statement.
On a clear night, after the moon has set, find a spot to sit outside away from city lights, and watch the night sky come alive.
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Shooting-star enthusiasts (and really, who isn’t one?) could be in for a special treat across South Florida when viewing the annual Perseid meteor shower. NASA says the meteors pose no threat to our planet as they tend to burn up 50 miles above the surface.
