The DC Traveler

This weekend, the earth will be bombarded by a meteor shower called the Perseid. Extra-terrestrial debris and dust particles will hit the earth’s atmosphere at 37 miles per second or 133,000 mph and burn up creating a beautiful natural light show.

The best times to watch are this weekend starting tonight (Saturday) and running through Monday, each morning between the hours of 1:00 – 5:00 a.m.  The shower may also be viewable in the evening.

I’m told the best direction in the DC area to look for the shower is toward the northeast, but the Perseid meteor shower is so wide and long that you may be able to see the streaking meteors across much of the night sky.

It’s best to observe from dark places such as fields, parks, or golf courses with an unobstructed view of the sky. The forecast for Sunday calls for no clouds, so that may be the best night for watching.

With the naked eye, you should be able to see 25-150 meteors per hour, depending on conditions. They will take the form of streaks of light shooting across the sky. You will hopefully see the meteors directly, and if very lucky, you may witness a very bright fireball as it breaks apart as it hits the earth’s atmosphere.

Photos - Courtesy of spaceweather.com  

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