Post #1 · Posted at 2010-08-11 09:34:55pm 13.6 years ago
 Telperion | |
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It's that time of year again.
A little background: the Perseids are a meteor shower that peaks around August 12. They come from the debris left behind by the passage of the comet Swift-Tuttle, but they get their name from the way they appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus, and the earliest recorded instance of them may date back to the first century A.D.
Why so important? The Perseids are one of the densest meteor showers all year, superseded occasionally only by the Geminids in December, and nobody wants to go meteor-watching in December lolz. Perseids also tend to be very bright and have nice visible trails. A recipe for awesomesauce
Best viewing times this year will be the night of August 11 to the morning of August 12. Perseus rises in the northeast around 11 PM and travels upward. If you don't know how to find Perseus, look for the little cluster of bright stars in roughly the same direction (the Pleiades) and glance a bit left. The meteors will be some distance out from Perseus, but you're most likely to see them if you look towards their radiant center. Past midnight and the wee hours of the morning of August 12th (before dawn) will be the best time to watch.
The official estimate on number of meteors per hour is over 120 (2 per minute), but you may see one only every five minutes, because they're not all super-bright and it's easy to blink and miss them. Totally worth it though! Try to find an area without much light pollution and pray for clear skies
One information link
Another information link
Wikipedia
Hope I'm posting this early enough for Japan to get outside in time
This is mostly a Northern Hemisphere event, since Perseus is hard to see below the equator.
tl;dr: Go outside tonight after midnight, pull up a chair, look northeast, try not to fall asleep, and maybe see falling stars.
A little background: the Perseids are a meteor shower that peaks around August 12. They come from the debris left behind by the passage of the comet Swift-Tuttle, but they get their name from the way they appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus, and the earliest recorded instance of them may date back to the first century A.D.
Why so important? The Perseids are one of the densest meteor showers all year, superseded occasionally only by the Geminids in December, and nobody wants to go meteor-watching in December lolz. Perseids also tend to be very bright and have nice visible trails. A recipe for awesomesauce
Best viewing times this year will be the night of August 11 to the morning of August 12. Perseus rises in the northeast around 11 PM and travels upward. If you don't know how to find Perseus, look for the little cluster of bright stars in roughly the same direction (the Pleiades) and glance a bit left. The meteors will be some distance out from Perseus, but you're most likely to see them if you look towards their radiant center. Past midnight and the wee hours of the morning of August 12th (before dawn) will be the best time to watch.
The official estimate on number of meteors per hour is over 120 (2 per minute), but you may see one only every five minutes, because they're not all super-bright and it's easy to blink and miss them. Totally worth it though! Try to find an area without much light pollution and pray for clear skies
One information link
Another information link
Wikipedia
Hope I'm posting this early enough for Japan to get outside in time
This is mostly a Northern Hemisphere event, since Perseus is hard to see below the equator.tl;dr: Go outside tonight after midnight, pull up a chair, look northeast, try not to fall asleep, and maybe see falling stars.
Post #2 · Posted at 2010-08-11 09:50:33pm 13.6 years ago
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Oh man, this looks huge! I have never seen a meteor shower EVER in my life. The closest thing I have ever gotten to a shower was a shooting star. And no, I did not make a wish, but still.
Anyways, THIS IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!!!!!!!!
Anyways, THIS IS GOING TO BE AWESOME!!!!!!!!
