Thursday, August 12, 2010

Perseids Meteor Shower TONIGHT!

Get ready for a dazzling show of natural fireworks. Tonight marks the peak of the Perseids meteor shower, and scientists are gearing up for what is expected to be the most magnificent show of the year, peaking at possibly 50 or more meteors per hour! Tonight is an especially good night for viewing due to the waxing cresent moon setting early in the evening, leaving a dark sky for the show.

What is a shooting star? Although they look like stars falling from the sky, a shooting star is actually a small piece of debris from the solar system that enters Earth’s atmosphere. The result is an intense momentary light display as it evaporates in a flash of heat created by the friction of its passage through the air. The streak of light that is seen is called a meteor. The piece of solid material that causes a meteor is called a meteoroid. Most are surprisingly small, about the size of a grain of dust!

During meteor showers, like the one happening this evening, the meteors appear to originate from a single point in the sky called the radiant. This occurs because the showers are associated with disintegrated comets or comets still orbiting the Sun, leaving behind clumps of gravel and dust that spreads out along the original orbit of the comet. When one of these streams of particles enters the Earth’s atmosphere, the meteors appear to originate from a single point.

Tonight’s meteor shower is called Perseids, so named because meteors will radiate from a point in the constellation Perseus, the Hero. The Perseid meteor shower happens every August when Earth passes through a stream of particles left behind from Comet Swift-Tuttle. If you have no idea where Perseus is in the night sky, don’t worry! The meteors will appear in all parts of the sky.

Meteor Shower Viewing Tips

The best time for viewing is between midnight and dawn tonight (the morning of August 13th)

Find a dark sky (if it’s not dark where you are, come on out to our place!)

Set up your camping chair or blanket and enjoy the spectacular show with family and friends!

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1 comment:

  1. Billy B BrennanJune 18, 2025 at 3:40 PM

    Hi Tracy ! Just try to set the record straight. Andy Bennet, Wally Grummun, Rod Pemble, and Mary Kebbler wrote "The Scat Rap". Doug Elliot and Billy Jonas, while performing it well, had nothing to do with its creation. Please take their names off of the songwriting credits. Andy, Wally, Rod and Mary wrote it at a workshop of mine at the Great Smokey Mountain Institute in 1988. I presented my methodology of writing environmental educational music and then had the group break into groups of four. These four wrote this masterpiece "The Scat Rap". I am going copywrite this song in their names. They deserve the credit.

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