If Henny Penny, aka Chicken Little were to look upon the night sky at a time when a meteor shower is occurring, he/she would surely declare, "The sky is falling!" Well, Henny Penny is not around but a meteor shower is definitely in the picture!
Radiant of the Perseid meteor shower. Illustration credit: NASA
Grab a lawn chair and set it up for a spectacular starry, starry night show but first check your weather! Hopefully, the weather gods are smiling in your area. The annual Perseids meteor shower is set to peak in the skies over Earth tonight as 30-40 (some sources report 100) shooting stars (meteors) an hour are expected to streak across the night sky, and continue for several days.
The Perseids have been observed for at least 2,000 years and are associated with the comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun once every 133 years. Each year in August, the Earth passes through a cloud of the comet's debris. These bits of ice and dust -- most over 1,000 years old -- burn up in the Earth's atmosphere to create one of the best meteor showers of the year. The Perseids can be seen all over the sky, but the best viewing opportunities will be across the northern hemisphere. Those with sharp eyes will see that the meteors radiate from the direction of the constellation Perseus. Source: Live Chat and Ustream!
Click Perseid Visibility Map! The Perseids will be visible any time after dark but peak viewing will be August 13, 3-4 am local time. This will be true any place in the world.
A multicolored, long Perseid striking the sky just to the left of Milky Way, 2009
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org
Image Source: en.wikipedia.org
To view the meteor shower, you do not need binoculars or a telescope, nor any other star-gazing equipment for that matter. All you need is your eyes![Video uploaded August 3, 2014]
Viewing Tips to Enjoy the Perseid Show
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| Perseid meteors streak across the sky on Aug. 12, 2013 in Cathedral Gorge State Park, NV. Ethan Miller/Getty Images |
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