People on here are acting like it's right now, late Saturday night/early Sunday morning...but all the sources I find say it will begin late Sunday night/early Monday morning. What gives?
2007-08-11 17:26:44 · 6 answers · asked by bada_bing2k4 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
I'm not sure I'd like a "media" shower.
2007-08-11 17:38:22 · answer #1 · answered by Spiderman 4 Ⓥ 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can start observing the Perseid meteor shower after about 11:00 PM local time on Saturday night with the peak on Sunday night/Monday morning. It has been going on for a few weeks, but is just now near the peak. There will be ~30 meteors/hour Saturday night and about 60-80/hour on Sunday night/Monday morning with a predicted flurry up to about 150/hour around 4 am EDST Monday morning. As a general rule, the best time for meteor viewing is after midnight into the early morning.
2007-08-12 00:33:37 · answer #2 · answered by N E 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. Late Sunday night to Monday morning.
2007-08-12 00:35:10 · answer #3 · answered by david m 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Perseid meteor shower peaks on the new-Moon night of Sunday–Monday, August 12–13 and can be seen from anyplace in the northern hemisphere.
The Perseids have a broad peak. So don't despair if clouds are forecast for Sunday night — or if work obligations prevent you from staying up until dawn on Monday.
The meteor rate increases to roughly 30 per hour in the predawn hours on Saturday, 45 per hour on Sunday morning, and 80 per hour before the sky starts to get light on Monday morning. That's for a single observer at a dark-sky site in the north temperate latitudes.
The Perseid meteors appear to stream away from their radiant near the border of Perseus and Cassiopeia. But wherever you see them, they appear to be moving away from the shower's radiant point near the Perseus/Cassiopeia border. This is a perspective effect, happening for the same reason that snowflakes appear to stream away from the center of the road when you're driving through a snowstorm.
On any given night, activity starts slowly in the evening but picks up by 11 p.m., when the radiant gets reasonably high in the sky. The meteor rate increases steadily through the night as the radiant rises higher, peaking just before the sky starts to get light, roughly 1½ to 2 hours before sunrise.
For the most pleasant viewing experience, find a spot far from any city lights. Perseids tend to be relatively bright as meteors go, but you'll still see more the darker your skies are. Bring a reclining chair so that you can view high in the sky in comfort; there's no point in filling half your field of view with trees. Don't forget warm, mosquito-proof clothes or, better, a sleeping bag. No matter how hot the days are, it can get surprisingly chilly under a clear sky late at night, especially whan you're inactive. And for many people, the most important accessory is bug spray for the parts of you that remain exposed!
It doesn't really matter where in the sky you watch; meteors can appear anywhere. Just watch where it's darkest, usually straight up. It's probably best not to stare directly at the radiant, because meteors there leave short trails.
2007-08-12 00:30:16 · answer #4 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The movement of celestial bodies being what it is, there is reason for some doubt. The information I get is that it probably will be at its peak between about 9 pm Sunday to near dawn Monday, close to the red dot in the Northeastern sky that would be Mars.
2007-08-12 00:33:36 · answer #5 · answered by vv 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
friday, saturday, and sunday actually...... but, your most likely to see them Sunday night/Monday morning 1-3 central time.
2007-08-12 00:34:19 · answer #6 · answered by answer me 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋