The Perseid meteor shower peaks this weekend

A light show that you can’t miss is coming up this weekend! Stay up late or set your alarm to wake up early to see the Perseid meteor shower as it lights up the sky.

The Perseid meteor shower is predicted to peak between August 11 and August 13. They should be highly visible during their peak because there will be a new moon giving us especially dark skies. There will likely be around 60-70 meteors per hour. You will be able to see the Perseids late in the evening after sunset. However, more meteors will be visible as the radiant, the point of origin of the meteors, gets higher in the sky. To find the radiant look toward the constellation Perseus in the North after 10 PM. Perseus is near Cassiopeia, which is a highly recognizable constellation shaped like the letter W (or M depending on when you are looking at it) in the Northern sky.

The Perseid meteor shower is one of the most spectacular meteor showers of the year because of its high rate of meteors with long tails. The long tails are a result of the high speed and brightness of the meteors. The Perseids are also known for producing fireballs. Fireballs are much brighter than the average meteors because they are caused by larger bits of material entering the atmosphere.

The debris that fuels the Perseids originated from Comet Swift-Tuttle. The comet has an orbit of 133 years and last visited the inner solar system in 1992. The nucleus of the comet is large at a diameter of nearly 16 miles!

While you’re outside watching the Perseid meteor shower, be sure to take a look at Mars. It’s still really close to Earth and visible without a telescope.

If you can’t make it out this weekend, don’t worry! The Perseids will continue at steadily lower rates until August 24 and they occur annually in late July through late August.

Clear skies and happy viewing!