The Perseid summer light show spectacular is back – and it could be better than ever.
The stunning meteor shower will peak on Wednesday night into Thursday morning and coincides with a total solar eclipse for parts of Europe — though the best time to view the fireballs will come after totality.
As many as 50 to 100 meteors per hour may be visible under ideal conditions, according to NASA. The American Meteor Society estimates 30 to 50 meteors per hour could be seen from rural regions.
Random meteors are visible in dark skies on any given night. Meteor showers tend to put on dazzling celestial shows and happen at predictable times every year when the Earth plows through trails of debris left behind by comets and, sometimes, asteroids. Those remnants collide with Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds, producing streaks of light known as shooting stars.
The Perseids are debris from comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle, an icy ball that orbits the sun every 133 years and isn't scheduled for a return visit until 2125. Observations of this meteor shower date back over 2,000 years.
The Perseids are a perennial favorite because they tend to produce brilliant fireballs. Summer temperatures also make this shower popular.
"We don't have to suffer through a cold winter night to get a good view of meteors," said astronomer Zach Vanderbosch with McDonald Observatory in Texas.
The moon will be in its new moon phase during the Perseids' peak, making viewing conditions even better.
"The moon is beautiful, but it's such a diva," said astronomer Aparna Venkatesan with the University of San Francisco. "New moon means we don't have moonlight flooding the sky, and you tend to see way more meteors as a result."
How to see the Perseid meteor shower
To spot the meteors, go outside after dark, away from clouds and city lights.
The best views will be between midnight and dawn when the constellation Perseus is high in the northern sky. The meteors will appear to radiate from that constellation.
Look up and give your eyes a half hour to adjust to the darkness. Vanderbosch recommends picking a patch of sky to focus on until a quick, bright streak passes by — even in your peripheral vision — and to avoid looking at your phone.
"There's just something magical about it," Vanderbosch said.
Where can I see the solar eclipse in the UK and Ireland?
Although exact timings of the 12 August solar eclipse will vary and weather conditions may cloud visibility, in general you’ll be able to see more coverage the further south-west you are, said Royal Museums Greenwich.
First contact should be visible from 6.08pm in Scotland through to 6.18pm in Truro, Cornwall. From 7.05pm to 7.15pm destinations in the UK will see the eclipse reach its maximum, and by 8.10pm the moon will no longer be covering the sun in all areas.
For those who are planning to view the solar spectacle, eclipse glasses are crucial.
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