On the night of August 11-12, the Perseids Metor Showers are expected to be visible once again across BC. Meteor showers are associated with the left over debris from comets as they orbit the sun. This shower is associated with the comet Swift-Tuttle, discovered in July of 1862 by two independent astronomers, Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle. Since this comet’s orbital path crossed our earth’s orbital path, we travel right through any and all debris that this comet leaves behind. Most of this consists of tiny dust and ice flakes which have fallen off the comet. When these little specks hit the earth’s atmosphere, they burn up leaving a very bright ionization trail for all to see.
Stargazers will be out in force to watch the annual Perseids meteor shower from Monday to Thursday. This year promises to be one of the best years yet with experts expecting more fireballs than usual. The best night of the week to pull up a chair to see the most frequent shooting stars is Tuesday.
This event happens as the Earth moves through the same debris field leftover by the same comet every year. The difference this year that has stargazers excited is that the debris field is thicker than usual, meaning there should be a good light show. The best time to see the most shooting stars will be just after the sun goes down until midnight. When the moon gets too high in the sky it will start to wash everything out.
The best place to get a great view will be anywhere facing northeast and away from ambient light. My front garden, in fact! If only I were there!!!
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