CHICO — For stargazers and aspiring astronomers alike, the upcoming Perseid meteor bathe would be the must-see occasion of the 12 months.
Illuminating the sky with roughly 100 capturing stars per hour, the meteor bathe is without doubt one of the most beloved meteor showers within the Northern Hemisphere, stated Chico State Affiliate Professor of Physics Nicholas Nelson.
The sunshine of the meteors might be seen to the bare eye, however might be best to see in darkish skies away from mild air pollution.
“As a superb rule of thumb, when you can see the Milky Approach, you’re in an space that has fairly darkish skies,” Nelson stated. “In case you simply lookup for a couple of minutes, you’ll see some fairly unimaginable capturing stars.”
The meteor bathe has been noticed for a whole lot of years from mid July to late August. It happens as a result of a big comet passes by the earth each 133 years, forsaking a path of particles within the ambiance. Every year the Earth passes by the Perseid constellation the place many of the particles are positioned, making a show of “capturing stars” within the Northern Hemisphere.
“In case you get into an space with actually darkish skies, the meteors really appear like they’re coming from a single level on the sky,” Nelson stated. “All the streaks will kind of hint again to 1 spot. That’s why it’s referred to as the Perseid meteor bathe as a result of it’s coming from the constellation Perseus”
Nelson stated that the most effective time to see this phenomenon is through the meteor bathe’s peak on Aug. 12 and 13.
“It’s an awesome alternative to see one thing lively happening within the sky,” Nelson stated. “More often than not when you go stargazing, the celebrities aren’t doing very a lot. The Perseids and different meteor showers are nice alternatives to kind of see the sky in motion, the place you possibly can see these stunning streaks of sunshine shoot throughout the sky.”
In keeping with the NASA, this 12 months’s bathe might be a lot dimmer than standard because of the full moon lighting up the sky on Friday. NASA writes that due to the moon’s mild air pollution, the most effective time to see the bathe is between midnight and daybreak, however it might nonetheless be troublesome to catch a glimpse of the meteors.
The Perseid meteors will start to wane Aug. 21 to 22 and stop utterly by Sept. 1.