Posted on 08/11/2018 2:33:29 PM PDT by MtnClimber
The new moon of August comes on Saturday the 11th this year, perfectly timed to bring dark, moonless nights around the peak of the Perseid meteor shower. Indeed, 2018 is an excellent year to watch for these meteors; such moonless-sky conditions are ideal for observing the Perseids.
Moreover, Earth should pass through the shower's richest part around 9 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, Aug. 12 (0100 GMT on Aug. 13).
So, late that night into the predawn hours of Monday, Aug. 13, viewers in North America and Europe should have the best seats in the house. Late-summer campers should put their sleeping bags outside the tent to enjoy this "Old Faithful" of meteor showers.
(Excerpt) Read more at space.com ...
Live in rural western Nevada. A good place to view this except for all the smoke that California is exporting into the area.:(
I don’t know that our skies are clear enough, but I’ll be watching nonetheless. Prime viewing time is tomorrow night (Sunday).
From Smithsonian Magazine...
Why This Year’s Perseid Meteor Shower Promises to Be Especially Dazzling
Thanks to the moon’s conspicuous absence, those looking up at peak viewing hours will see 60-70 shooting stars every hour
I don't know how fast these sandgrain-sized specks of comet debris are travelling, but the Earth, is moving round the Sun at something like 66,000 miles per hour. That's 18 miles per second! So if they hit our atmosphere head-on, as opposed to us/earth overtaking them, that's a tremendous amount of energy. No wonder such a tiny speck of dust can light up the sky as they do.
We have fires in Colorado, but far from where I live. I can see some haze, but not much.
Thanks for the heads-up!
Lucky for you the smoke doesn’t make it over the Rockies.
The smoke comes over some days and not on others. Today not so much so I posted this.
How about my SSN
Will that help save me?
SSN 042-68-4425
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