Perseid meteor shower

The Perseid (Per-see-id) meteor shower is one of the most dramatic things to see in the night sky between July and August.

It peaks on 12 and 13 August this year.

As we are all fortunate to live in an area with dark skies we should get a great view, weather permitting.

How to see the Perseid meteor shower

Reduce the amount of light pollution in your field of view. Turn off any outside lights. If there’s still light pollution around try heading out onto one of our many footpaths, or onto the Recreation Field. If you’re not able to go anywhere just turn your back to street lamps. Give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust to the dark so that you can catch more of the fainter meteors – this does mean that you should avoid looking at your phone!

Meteors can appear in any part of the sky so the more of the sky you can see, the better. Find an area with a clear view of the horizon away from trees and buildings. Binoculars and telescopes are not necessary as they will restrict the size of the sky that will be visible to you.

The meteors will seem to originate from the constellation of Perseus. You can use a stargazing app to find the exact location you should look.

What is the Perseid meteor shower?

As comets get close to the Sun, they heat up and pieces break off. If the debris ends up in the Earth’s path around the Sun, it can slam into our atmosphere at speeds of between 7 – 45 miles per second. The actual speed at which a meteor enters our atmosphere depends on the combined speed of the Earth and the debris itself.

The average speed for a Perseid meteor is 36 miles per second. The air in front of the meteor is squashed and heated to thousands of degrees Celsius. The smaller meteors vapourise and leave behind a bright trail of light. Larger meteors can explode as fireballs.

This natural wonder is being promoted as part of Fownhope Environment Group’s focus on Dark Skies during 2024.