August 12 to 13 Perseid Meteor Showers: Every Year Is A Spectacle

Scientists and naturalists of the old times regarded celestial events as a seemingly random event and even incalculable. But when Galileo first proposed that the Earth is round instead of its previous belief of being flat, the world changed in an instant. As it turned out, astronomers were able to predict the phases of the moon, the movement of the Earth in space, and other celestial bodies such as comets and meteors. Everyone was interested in these events, but none captured their fascination or imagination more than the Perseid meteor shower.

A meteor shower is the collision between the Earth and the debris from space called cosmic debris. It is usually debris from collision of celestial objects or it can be chunks of matter from an orbiting comet. The Perseid meteor shower has its origin from the comet Swift-Tuttle that orbits the sun. They are sometimes called Perseids and this is because they appear to be coming from the constellation of Perseus.

Those who are romantic at heart, scientists and hobbyists anticipate the yearly Perseids meteor shower. This meteor shower happens every year during August and is most visible in the Northern Hemisphere. Incidentally, the night of August 12 is a New Moon, which means that the dark sky will treat spectators with a bright display of the meteor shower.

The Perseids will be entering the atmosphere at about 60 kilometers per second, the minimum speed required in a highway. Because of this, the shower display will be very visible. The debris are expected to vary from the size of a grain of sand to a small rock which disintegrates into light streaks as it enters the atmosphere that we call shooting stars, but sometimes, the debris are large enough for it to enter the atmosphere that we call meteorites.

The farther you are from a city, the better, since city pollution can decrease visibility. Also, drive away from the buildings and into a wide clear area to enjoy a wider view of the sky. When watching meteor showers, the best time to view them is during the pre-dawn hours. Binoculars and telescopes might be helpful in watching a meteor shower, but in August 12, as long as you have a 20/20 vision and enough patience to wait for the shower, you will actually see one especially on a clear sky. On the other hand, in the case of Perseids, a number of meteors can be seen every minute.

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