‘Best meteor bathe in years’ hits UK tonight – this is how one can spot it
Brits are being encouraged to look up to the heavens tonight for a chance to witness the stunning Perseid meteor shower at its zenith.
The Perseid meteor shower, one of the most impressive celestial events with a high hourly rate and bright meteors, occurs annually between July and August. This year, the shower’s peak is anticipated to be between August 12 and 13.
Hobbyist stargazers can expect to see up to 100 shooting stars per hour during this annual meteor shower, which consists of debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle. This comet orbits every 20 to 200 years and was last spotted in 1992. The Royal Observatory Greenwich describes the Perseid shower, pronounced Per-see-id, as “one of the most dramatic things to see in the night sky between July and August”.
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However, Dr Ed Bloomer, a senior astronomer at the observatory, assures that even though tonight is the peak, there won’t be a significant rise and fall in visibility. So, if you miss it tonight, you haven’t lost your opportunity, reports the Mirror.
He said: “The Perseids should give good viewing a couple of days either side, with local weather and light conditions probably more significant factors than the precise mathematical peak.”
The Perseid meteor, which travels at an average speed of 36 miles per second, creates a bright streak across the night sky as the air in front of it is compressed and heated to thousands of degrees Celsius. Smaller meteors vaporise, leaving behind a bright trail of light often seen as a shooting star, while larger ones can explode as fireballs.
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This year’s Perseid meteor shower is active from July 17 to August 24, with the number of meteors decreasing after peaking overnight on August 12 (tonight). At this peak, up to 100 “bright fast meteors with trains” will be visible.
As the moon sets below the horizon around 10.30pm, light pollution will decrease, making the meteors more prominent.
The Perseids radiant is always above the horizon as viewed from the UK, so stargazers should be able to see some meteors as soon as the sun sets, meaning there’s no need to stay up late for a glimpse. However, the Royal Greenwich Observatory suggests that the best time to view the Perseids is between midnight and 5.30am.
(Image: PA)
The observatory advises: “It is always ideal to try to spot meteors when the moon is below the horizon or when it is in its crescent phase, otherwise it acts as natural light pollution and prevents the fainter meteors from being visible,” They add: “In 2024 the peak of the Perseid meteor shower is around the moon’s first quarter phase, so conditions are reasonably favourable for seeing Perseid meteors.”
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