Perseid Meteor Shower - August - Wild Texas Forums: Parks, Travel & Recreation

Shannon · 08-11-2005, 06:08 PM

PERSEID METEOR SHOWER

WHEN: Friday, August 12th -- before sunrise

Quote:

--Article Credit: NASA.gov (Copyright info

Got a calendar? Circle this date: Friday, August 12th. Next to the circle write "before sunrise" and "Meteors!" Attach all of the above to your refrigerator in plain view so you won't miss the 2005 Perseid meteor shower.

The Perseids come every year, beginning in late July and stretching into August. Sky watchers outdoors at the right time can see colorful fireballs, occasional outbursts and, almost always, long hours of gracefully streaking meteors. Among the many nights of the shower, there is always one night that is best. This year: August 12th.

The source of the shower is Comet Swift-Tuttle. Although the comet is nowhere near Earth, the comet's wide tail does intersect Earth's orbit. We glide through it every year in July and August. Tiny bits of comet dust hit Earth's atmosphere traveling 132,000 mph. At that speed, even a tiny smidgen of dust makes a vivid streak of light--a meteor--when it disintegrates. The shower is most intense when Earth is in the dustiest part of the tail.

Perseid meteors fly out of the constellation Perseus, hence their name. The best time to watch is during the hours before sunrise when Perseus is high in the sky: sky map. Between 2 a.m. and dawn on August 12th, if you get away from city lights, you could see hundreds of meteors. Scouts, this is a good time to go camping!

Really, it could hardly be better. The Perseids come on a warm summer night. (Note: This is a northern hemisphere shower.) Other familiar meteor showers like the Leonids of November require a parka to enjoy. All you need for Perseids are light pajamas.

And there's a bonus: Mars.

In the constellation Aries, right beside Perseus, Mars is shining like a bright red star. Step outside before sunrise, look east, and you'll find you have a hard time taking your eyes off Mars. There's something bewitching about it, maybe the red color or perhaps the fact that it doesn't twinkle like a true star. It's steady. You stare at Mars and it stares right back.

Earth and Mars are converging for a close encounter on October 30th. Consider August 12th a preview. Mars already outshines every star in the night sky, and it's getting brighter every night. If you like August, you'll love October.

And you will like August. Picture this: It's four in the morning. The sky is dark. The breeze is pleasant. Mars is beaming down from the east while meteors flit across the sky.

Maybe you should go circle the calendar again.

To plan when to view the Perseids for your location, visit Gary W. Kronk's Comets and Meteor Showers website.

Turn Key · 08-12-2005, 12:00 AM

Thanks! Knew this date was coming but due to some hassles in my life I'd forgotten about it. Just took a look and saw one in about a minute of watching. Will be out later for a longer look.

Thanks again and happy camping!

Turn Key · 08-12-2005, 07:21 AM

Shoot! Sky went overcast about 1:30 and actually drizzled a bit about 5:00. Did see one meteor just prior to the clouds rolling in. Oh, well! Maybe next year.

Happy Camping!

Shannon · 08-12-2005, 09:04 AM

Don't give up so quickly. Meteor showers are caused by the Earth passing close to/through debris fields (tail, etc.) of comets. Thus, the "peak viewing" date provided is just the BEST time to view meteors associated with that comet/debris. Days both earlier and later than the peak date can yield fine meteor viewing. I actually think today is the peak date, btw. AUGUST 12th before sunrise means tonight, in my mind.

I saw 5 meteors last night in about 35-40 minutes, and that's with heavy just barely broken low overcast that I was forced to look around. The 5 meteors I did see were bright and spectacular. If I lived further from the San Antonio city glare (lights), I'd likely have seen more even with the cloudcover -- the meteors I did see were very bright, and several formed very long 'tails' as they streaked across the sky.

So, do look outside for the next several nights if you're at all interested in meteors. The time should be rewarded with at least a handful of meteors. On any NORMAL night you can count on seeing a meteor if you're patient enough, and sometimes more than a couple if you're in a very dark sky area.

Shannon · 08-12-2005, 09:08 AM

P.S. I don't know why, but for some reason the meteor showers aren't listed on our WildTexas.com calendar here. I know I entered those dates into our calendar at some point, but it looks like they didn't get set as recurring events (year-to-year). Probably because the exact dates of the meteor "showers" fluctuate. Anyway, I will be getting those back into our calendar (for at least 2005 & 2006) ASAP.

There are other meteor showers throughout the year that are viewable by residents in the USA. The Perseids just happen to be the "grand daddy" of meteor showers, generally, producing the most meteors per hour. In older times, the Perseids are what made people think propesy was coming true and the world was about to tend, because they produced so many meteors it appeared to be almost raining. (Perseid Meteor Shower history)

Turn Key · 08-12-2005, 01:09 PM

Work the 3rd. watch and tonight is my "Monday"

. Maybe next week or next year.

Happy Camping!

Shannon · 08-12-2005, 01:47 PM

What I'm saying is even 3 days from now is better viewing for meteors than just any ol' day of the year. Why so down?