Forecasters at NASA recently announced that the almost new moon would offer good visibility for the Perseid meteor shower which will peak on August 12 and 13.
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And amateur skywatchers all over the world turned up some spectacular examples, from California to England to this lucky 30-second shot in Spain that captured three meteors at once.
The meteors reached their peak on Wednesday and Thursday night when over 100 per hour were produced. I grabbed a blanket and headed to the second floor porch at the museum where I could watch the northern sky. To check out his videos and photos, visit his website.
Professor of astrophysics at the University of Queensland Michael Dinkwater says that while the earth is continually receiving little showers of material from space, this is a time where it is particularly noticeable. “It was tough to find the Perseids amongst the clouds and soon; one shone across the sky just in the gap to put on a nice display”. It was like the sky was alive.
Up to 20 times more shooting stars than normal are expected to jet across the heavens after dark, according to David Moore, of Astronomy Ireland. The overlook also gave me the view of Crozet, Charlottesville and Monticello. We arose, and to our great astonishment all the firmament seemed enveloped in splendid fireworks, as if every star in the broad expanses had been hurled from its course and sent lawless through the wilds of the ether. So, set your alarm early and see if you can see the bugs hitting the windshield.
Sweet has been out several times in the past to look at the shower. “I have been outside for about 3 hours, and the results are bloody fantastic!” he said.
That same sentiment was shared with Jenny Lowrey who came from Charlottesville.
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If you were lucky, you were able to see Venus, Jupiter and Mercury in the western sky last week Well, it should tell you something about how bright Venus is and just how fast it moves when I tell you that tomorrow, Venus will be between the Earth and the Sunday.
