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Every year from mid-July through the end of August, the night sky treats us to a spectacular celestial phenomenon known as the Perseid Meteor Shower. This astronomical event occurs when the Earth goes through the debris – bits of ice and rock – left behind by the Swift-Tuttle comet, which last passed Earth in 1992. The peak time to see the meteors is when Earth enters the densest area of debris, this year August 11-12.

During its peak, if conditions are good – that is, no clouds or moonlight – one can see between 150-200 meteors an hour. The meteors, or shooting stars, are fragments of debris from the comet, which burn as they enter Earth's atmosphere. The typical Perseid meteoroid moves at 133,200 mph when it hits the atmosphere, and that is when they become known as meteors. Most are tiny, about the size of a grain of sand, and very few actually hit the ground, but if one does, it is then known as a meteorite.

The point in the sky from where meteors appear to originate is known as the radiant. For Perseids this is the constellation Perseus, from which it gets its name. The best time to look for meteors is the pre-dawn hours. One should go to the darkest possible location and simply lean back and look at the northern sky. Avoid using telescopes or binoculars so that you can see as much sky as possible. It also may take about 30 minutes for the eyes to adjust to the dark. Patience is too is key, as the meteors may appear sporadically.

To learn more about the Perseid Meteor Shower and meteors in general, check out our book display on the Library’s main floor as well as these ebooks.

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Perseid Meteor Shower

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