Perseids shower tonight!
[quote]The annual Perseid meteor shower is expected to put on a good show this week for those willing to get up in the wee hours of the morning and wait patiently for the shooting stars.
In North America, the best time to watch will be between midnight to 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12, but late Tuesday night and also Wednesday night could prove fruitful, weather permitting.
The Perseids are always reliable, and sometimes rather spectacular. The only things that puts a damper on the August show are bad weather or bright moonlight. Unfortunately this week, as the Perseids reach their peak Tuesday and Wednesday nights, the moon will be high in the sky, outshining the fainter meteors.
Still, skywatchers around the globe will have a good chance of spotting the brighter meteors. Some already are enjoying the show.
Already underway
The Perseids are bits of debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which has laid down several streams of debris, each in a slightly different location, over the centuries as it orbits the sun. Every August, Earth passes through these debris streams, which spread out over time.
"They are typically fast, bright and occasionally leave persistent trains," says Joe Rao, SPACE.com's Skywatching Columnist. "And every once in a while, a Perseid fireball will blaze forth, bright enough to be quite spectacular and more than capable to attract attention even in bright moonlight."
Low numbers of Perseids, including some bright fireballs, have already been reported as Earth began entering the stream in late July. Seasoned observers have counted up to 25 per hour already, or nearly one every two minutes.
Most meteors are no bigger than a pea. They vaporize as they enter Earth's atmosphere, creating bright streaks across the sky.
The Perseids appear to emanate from the constellation Perseus, which rises high in the sky around midnight and is nearly overhead by dawn. Like most meteor showers, the hours between midnight and daybreak are typically the best time to watch, because that's when the side of Earth you are on is rotating into the direction of Earth's travels through space, so meteors are "scooped up" by the atmosphere at higher rates, much like a car's windshield ends the lives of more bugs than does the rear bumper.
Astronomers expect up to 200 meteors per hour in short bursts of up to 15 minutes or so. But many of the fainter meteors will simply not be visible due to moonlight, and rates will go down even more for those in urban areas. More likely a typical observer under reasonably dark skies might hope to see a meteor every couple minutes when the bursts come, and fewer during lulls.
When to watch
The best time to watch is between midnight and dawn Wednesday. Forecasters say the best stretch could come between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. ET (1-2 a.m. PT), which would be after daybreak in Europe. Some Perseids might be visible late Tuesday night, and Wednesday night into Thursday morning could prove worthwhile, too.
Meteor forecasting is still in its infancy, however, so the best bet for anyone truly hungry to spot shooting stars is to get in as much observing time as possible from around 11 p.m. Tuesday night until dawn Wednesday, and if you miss that show, try the same time frame Wednesday evening into Thursday morning.
Meteors should be visible in the pre-dawn hours, weather permitting, all around the Northern Hemisphere.
"Earth passes through the densest part of the debris stream sometime on Aug. 12," said Bill Cooke of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. "Then, you could see dozens of meteors per hour."
Viewing tips
The best location is far from city and suburban lights. Ideally, find a structure, mountain or tree to block the moon. Then scan as much of the sky as possible. The meteors can appear anywhere, heading in any direction. If you trace their paths backward, they'll all point to the constellation Perseus.
People in locations where any chill might occur should dress warmer than they think necessary to allow for prolonged viewing.
Seasoned skywatchers advise using a blanket or lounge chair for comfort, so you can lie back and look up for long periods. Allow at least 15 minutes for your eyes to fully adjust to the darkness. Then expect meteors to be sporadic: You might see two in a row, or several minutes could go by between shooting stars.
Avid meteor watchers might want to try scanning the northeastern horizon from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. local time (your local time, wherever you are) for Perseids that graze the horizon.
"Earthgrazers are meteors that approach from the horizon and skim the atmosphere overhead like a stone skipping across the surface of a pond," Cooke explained. "They are long, slow and colorful – among the most beautiful of meteors." He notes that an hour of watching may net only a few of these at most, but seeing even one can make the whole night worthwhile.[/quote]
Wooooop!
[editline]wtf[/editline]
Wait...
[QUOTE=Nat562;16640585]Perseids shower tonight!
-Astronomers expect up to 200 meteors per hour in short bursts of up to 15 minutes or so. But many of the fainter meteors will simply not be visible due to moonlight, and rates will go down even more for those in urban areas. More likely a typical observer under reasonably dark skies might hope to see a meteor every couple minutes when the bursts come, and fewer during lulls.
-...the best bet for anyone truly hungry to spot shooting stars is to get in as much observing time as possible from around 11 p.m. Tuesday night until dawn Wednesday...
-The best location is far from city and suburban lights. Ideally, find a structure, mountain or tree to block the moon.
[/QUOTE]
FUCK.
Well let me just take a look outside.
Cloudy as fuck
Holy shit it's Wednesday?!?
I seriously thought it was Monday... fuck.
[QUOTE=OvB;16640670]Holy shit it's Wednesday?!?
I seriously thought it was Monday... fuck.[/QUOTE]
Time goes by fast doesn't it. [img]http://d2k5.com/sa_emots/frown.gif[/img]
Wasn't this last night...
[quote]Skywatchers are preparing for the annual Perseid meteor shower, which should peak in the early hours (0200 BST, 0100 GMT) of Wednesday 13 August.[/quote]
Whooops lol
Pfft weathers shit here so I doubt I'll see anything.
Fuck, why do I have to live in the southern hemisphere?
I don't see anything
probably cuz of all the city lights :argh:
[QUOTE=VladimirPutin;16640753]Wasn't this last night...[/QUOTE]
For some, Americans etc are around 4-9hours behind us so.
Will Australia be able to see it?
[QUOTE=bigdan;16640856]Will Australia be able to see it?[/QUOTE]
No.
Well fuck, I grabbed a pillow, a blanket and my laptop and I went and laid down outside but I didn't see a darn thing. Clouds moved in. :(
Too damn cloudy.
Why was this posted after it happened? :bang::Dawkins102:
it's cloudy/raining.
Fuck.
Something tells me there will be plenty of collisions..
Clear skies in Vancouver, yay!
It's going on right now, but it's smoky in Calif cause of fires so no meteors
I'm in Orange County, California (bright, urban area) and in the past 45 minutes I saw 10. Truly spectacular.
:< I wanted to see it too! But i can guess it didnt show in sweden, and its the middle of the day when its night in america here :v:
[QUOTE=VladimirPutin;16640753]Wasn't this last night...[/QUOTE]
I read somewhere some of the meteors showed up as early as July 23rd. But mainly it will be August 12th - 13th.
I live out in the middle of the woods with no city light. It's about 6 am now. I looked outside my bathroom window for a few minutes. I didn't see anything and I started getting bored but then I saw a light going really fast fly past the sky and disappear. It was pretty cool. I waited more but I didn't see any others. I wish I could have seen more. I would go outside but I live in the middle of the woods and I don't really want to stand out there alone because it's creepy. Maybe tomorrow night I will.
How valuable are said Perseids?
Can I see it in Finland? If do, when?
i couldn't even see the moon last night because of the clouds, fuck
I saw some foxes this morning at about 3.
Is this happening now?!
It finished, and it was quite nice imo.
It's not tonight it was this morning. Good job making a useless thread.
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