Once a year the Earth’s orbit intersects that of Comet Swift-Tuttle and some of the dust debris from the comet collides with the Earth’s atmosphere creating the infamous Perseid Meteor Shower. Most of the particles that collide with the atmosphere are smaller than a peanut and completely incinerate in less than a second. However, given the speed at which they are travelling we see beautiful streaks of sometimes colored light across parts of the sky. Sometimes larger pieces hit the atmosphere creating bright fireballs whose meteor trails can span half the sky and take several seconds to dissipate. So why is it called the “Perseid” Meteor Shower? When observing the shower, all of the meteors seem to originate from the constellation of Perseus. Of course this is nothing more than an optical illusion but as with most celestial objects, the constellations provide an excellent way to locate them in the night sky.
The best time to view the Perseids is AFTER 10 PM on THIS Thursday August 12th…..with midnight to 2 or 3 AM (into Friday) being the most opportune time if the sky is clear. If the sky isn’t clear, Tuesday the 11th and Friday the 13th will be good as well. Why so late? Pretty simple, think “bugs on your windshield”. Did you ever notice the side windows of your car usually don’t end up with the same summer evening carnage that your windshield does?!? As with the forward facing windshield of your car, your place on Earth needs to be facing INTO the debris field……and any given location on Earth is driving more or less “head-on” into space around midnight to 3 AM.The best place to view the Perseids is a relatively dark location away from say shopping centers and large groups of streetlights. All you need to observe them is a blanket to lay on and your eyes. Head out around 10 or 11, spread out your blanket so your oriented toward Perseus (toward the Northeast), lay back, relax and enjoy!
Not only is the Perseid Meteor Shower the best of the year, 2010 is especially unique in that there will be a beautiful and tight planetary conjunction occurring as well. If you want to start your evening earlier do so around 8 or 9 PM by stepping outside to observing Saturn, Venus, Mars, and a crescent Moon all within a circle less than 10 degrees (or one fist width) in diameter. The 4 objects will be shining beautifully in the evening twilight. Another positive aspect of this year’s Perseid Meteor Shower is that the Moon will set BEFORE the “show” begins, thus leaving a nice dark sky for the best possible meteor observing conditions.For more information and a sky map for both the conjunction and meteor shower radiant in Perseus visit……
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2010/05aug_perseids/
If it is clear, the 5A's will hold a Perseid Meteor Shower observing session at the Mt. Pollux Conservation Area in South Amherst THIS Thursday night starting around 11 PM. If you’d like to join us, please contact either Tom Whitney or Kevin Collins using the information at the bottom of our homepage. If you don't feel like travelling, any spot with a relatively open view of the sky near home will work for you….a park, ball field, even your backyard.
-The 5A's
