Blame it on the Moon: The 2006 Perseid meteor shower is going to be a dud. Oh, Earth will pass through the Perseid meteoroid stream, as usual. And meteors will flit across the sky. But when the shower peaks on Saturday morning, August 12th, the glare of the 87%-full Moon will overwhelm most Perseids, making them impossible to see.
That sounds like the end of the story—but don't stop reading.
You might see some Perseids, after all. The trick is to look before the Moon rises. Plan your meteor watch for 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, August 11. The Moon won't be up yet and, in the darkness just after sunset, a special kind of meteor may appear: the Perseid Earthgrazer.
Earthgrazers are meteors that skim the top of Earth's atmosphere like a stone skipping across the surface of a pond. They appear when the radiant of a meteor shower is near the horizon, spewing meteoroids not down, but horizontally overhead. Such will be the case on Friday evening after sunset when Perseus (the radiant of the Perseids) first peeks over the northern horizon.
Don't expect a storm. Earthgrazers are rare. An hour's watching might net no more than one or two, but that's plenty. Earthgrazers are colorful and gracefully slow. People who see one talk about it for years.
Looking for Earthgrazers is simple: Spread a blanket on the ground, lie down and look up. A reclining lawn chair facing north works just as well. Perseid Earthgrazers streak overhead, flying generally north to south.
If you haven't spotted an Earthgrazer by 10 p.m., you probably won't. By 10 p.m., Perseus will have risen too high in the sky for grazing meteoroids. (Try skipping a stone by throwing it down into a pond and you'll see the problem.) Plus, the Moon itself rises around 10 p.m. to put a real damper on things.
The rest of the night is for contrarians, people who stay up until dawn in spite of the moonlight. They'll see some Perseids, a small fraction of the norm, to be sure, but not zero. Occasionally, a really bright fireball might streak across the sky, making the long night worthwhile. It pays to resist!
Next year will be better. The 2007 Perseids peak with no Moon in sight. Until then, watch out for Earthgrazers.
Note: All times in this story are local to the reader. So, "plan your meteor watch for 8:30 and 10 p.m." means go outside between 8:30 and 10:00 p.m. local time, no matter where you live. Perseid meteors are best seen from Earth's northern hemisphere.
Source: by Dr. Tony Phillips, Science@NASA
Related stories:
Amateur Astronomers See Perseids Hit the Moon
One, the old-fashioned way: Find a dark place with starry skies and count the meteors streaking overhead. Two, the new way: Find a dark place with starry skies and then completely ignore the meteors. Instead, watch the Moon. That's where the explosions are.
August brings the Perseid meteors and a cluster of planets
(PhysOrg.com) -- The annual Perseid meteor shower will peak before dawn on Aug. 12. This year the Perseids will be competing with the nearly full moon at first, but after the moon sets there will be many bright streaks in the sky.
The 2008 Perseid Meteor Shower
Mark your calendar: The 2008 Perseid meteor shower peaks on August 12th and it should be a good show.
Natural fireworks, courtesy of the Perseid meteor shower
As the Perseid meteor shower becomes visible in all its glory on 13 August, natural fireworks will fill the sky. Showers of meteors, or ‘shooting stars’, appear as bright streaks of light in the sky. The display runs through the night.
December offers meteor shower and cluster of three planets
The Geminid meteor shower is usually the best of the year, but it tends to take a back seat to the Perseid shower of August. The Perseids have the advantage of a pleasant summer night, while the Geminids have a major problem in attracting spectators -- it takes dedication to wait patiently outdoors in the biting cold of a December night. At least you don't have to deal with biting mosquitoes.
Perseid Meteor Shower To Peak Aug. 12
The annual Perseid meteor shower will be visible in the night sky throughout Colorado and will peak during the early morning hours of Aug. 12, according to an astronomy expert at the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Probing Question: What are Shooting Stars?
In the early morning darkness on April 15, 1912, as the R.M.S. Titanic was sinking in the freezing Atlantic, survivors witnessed a large number of streaking lights in the sky, which many believed to be the souls of their drowning loved ones passing to heaven.
Mars Joins The Perseid Meteor Shower For A Beautiful Display On August 12th.
Got a calendar? Circle this date: Friday, August 12th. Next to the circle write "before sunrise" and "Meteors!" Attach all of the above to your refrigerator in plain view so you won't miss the 2005 Perseid meteor shower.
