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Tonight is the peak night of the Perseid Meteor shower. It is one of my favorite times of the whole summer, the night when you either stay up really late or get up really early to go to some darkened field to watch little flecks of fire streak across the sky.
Now, not everyone can get out of their Mega-City to watch this yearly occurrence; but not to worry, the guys at NASA will hook you up! That is what we have at the top of this post a live composite of the meteors that have streaked across the sky.
They should be starting the view right as this post, um, posts, so take a look. There is also a live chat with NASA astronomers if you are into that kind of thing and you can find it here.
Now the camera you are looking at will be at the top of the NASA facility in Huntsville AL. If you don’t like that view, this link will take you to other cameras scattered across the nation.
For those of you, like myself, who want the real naked-eye view, here is what you want to do. The best time to see the Perseids is between about 3am and dawn. Yes, yes, I know, it is late but this is Late Night FDL! We are up when others are down (or something to that effect)!
Go as far from city lights as practical. Lie down on the ground so that the horizon is in your peripheral vision. Unfortunately, the Moon is full and it is going to brighten the sky. So be sure to put it to behind you — and don’t look anywhere near it as it will wash out most of the meteors. Then let your eyes adjust, in about 10 minutes or so you will be able to see streaks of light crossing the sky!
Where do these little bits of space grit come from? They were left behind by the Swift-Tuttle comet. This comet has a 133 year-long orbit and leaves particles of ice and dust in Earth’s orbit. When we pass through this defuse cloud, they burn up in our atmosphere.
Now post a comment and figure out where you’re going to watch the skies tonight!
The floor is yours.
15 Comments
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bill! i went out last night after my late late night thread and saw several. amazing how fast they travel and how quickly they poof and then *whammo* there goes another one across the sky.
Kewl. something to view from my ranch house!
It’s cloudy and rainy here this evening, which sucks for Perseid viewing but is a blessed relief for the garden. Maybe next year…
I’m looking at a similar cloudy nite, the Sun is still up here, so I might luck out…! However, I’ve already seen the beginning of the Perseids, from atop MK, and, I’ll be gazing at the tail end of ‘em on Tuesday nite…! ;-)
the good part about watching from brooklyn is that the city is so bright the moon is not a big factor. we’re gonna watch from the roof of our building– meteors above us and the j train just below
Thanks, I had almost forgot about the guy on PBS that would come on for about 5 minutes and tell us all to “keep looking up”. It will remind you of what was there before us, and what will be there after us.
Since there’s a meteor shower going on, I’d rather have the roof, cool?
Unfortunately, it usually gets cloudy and foggy here just before dawn. Hopefully, I’ll catch a few tonight before the clouds move in again.
Hope everyone else has good viewing.
Wonder what the white noise is on that video stream?
Western Mass. We have this place called Mt. Tom. Above local city lights.
C’est si bon! On my way now.
Been out twice tonight but it’s too cloudy. Will try agin at 2 am. It’s nice seeing an article about the Perseid Meteor showers. Been watching them for severa years. About 5 years ago was the best I ever saw, no clouds and nearly no moon and I even saw a red fireball. It was amazing!
Hey all
If you can’t see the shower, but are still utterly determined to catch the event, there’s still a way you can “listen” to it.
SpaceweatherRadio.com will actually allow you to hear the waves produced by the particles as they are ionized in the upper atmosphere.
From CBS:
But the Air Force has a radar surveillance facility in Texas that beams radio waves into the sky. When a bit of cosmic fluff streaks through our sky, the ionized trail it leaves reflects the radio waves, producing an echo. This radio wave is then translated into sound, so you can effectively hear a meteor!
In any case, even if this shower in a wash, you’ve still got the Leonids and Geminids to look forward to.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/11/perseid-meteor-shower-2011_n_924966.html
If you are headed west on your way home do stop at the Brass cat and tell the owner Mike that you just heard from me. I have neglected to talk in over a year. Thanks.
Know the ‘Cat well. used to live in E’hampton. My nephew used to cook for John at Nini’s. across the street. On the other side now, in Holyoke. Great night here, perfect weather. Maybe 60, not a cloud. Moon in the Southern sky.
If you know Mt. Tom, it is DARK up there. Big change from my 40 years in NYC.