Heads up space lovers (and those who just like cool things), one of the best meteor showers of the year is currently ongoing, and the peak day is coming soon. According to NASA, the Perseid meteor shower started on July 14 and will continue until September 1, but it peaks on August 13. If you’re hoping to see potentially up to 100 meteors per hour, moving around 37 miles per second, your best chance is to look up at the sky in the Northern Hemisphere during the pre-dawn hours.
“Meteors come from leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids. When comets come around the Sun, they leave a dusty trail behind them. Every year Earth passes through these debris trails, which allows the bits to collide with our atmosphere and disintegrate to create fiery and colorful streaks in the sky.” – NASA
The Perseid meteor shower originates from the particles of comet 109P, or Swift-Tuttle. This comet, discovered in 1862 by Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle, takes 133 years to complete one full orbit around the sun. At 16 miles across at the nucleus, this comet is nearly twice the size of the object hypothesized to have taken out the dinosaurs.
If you’re aiming to spot this meteor shower, look towards the Perseus constellation, or the shower’s radiant. The radiant acts as a waypoint for viewers, it is not the origin of the shower, but it does typically lend a meteor shower its name.
As with any celestial object, the best places to view the Perseus shower will be where ever it’s the darkest (ideally with no moon in the sky) in the northern hemisphere. Earthsky.org’s stargazing map is a great way to find a good spot near you. Additionally, seeking out a nearby International Dark Sky Place, a location that preserves the dark sky, could reveal some incredible views.