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How to watch the Perseids — the best meteor shower of the year
BY SOPHIE LEWIS

JULY 12, 2021 / 11:15 AM / CBS NEWS

The past few months have delivered several spectacular celestial phenomena, including the rare "super flower blood moon" lunar eclipse, "ring of fire" solar eclipse and a beautiful strawberry supermoon. But now, the year's best meteor shower, Perseids, is fast approaching, promising to bring spectacular shooting stars to the summer sky.

Astrophotographers will want to make sure their telescopes and cameras are ready for this epic cosmic event, which delivers incredible photos each year.

What are the Perseids?
The Perseids are active every year from around July 14 to August 24, according to NASA. The meteor shower peaks in mid-August, peaking this year on August 11, 12 and 13.

Under ideal conditions, skywatchers can expect to see up to 100 meteors per hour — a much higher amount than most other showers. NASA considers it the best shower of the year, and it's always a crowd-pleaser.

The meteors are very fast and bright, regularly leaving long tails of light and color behind them as they streak across the sky at around 37 miles per second. They are also known for their fireballs, big explosions of bright light and color that last longer than an average meteor streak.

Perseid meteors, which are leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids, appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus — earning the shower its name. The constellation is not the actual source of the meteors, so viewers do not need to determine its exact location to spot shooting stars.

The comet responsible for the Perseids is called 109P/Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1862 by Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle. It orbits the sun once every 133 years, last passing through the inner solar system in 1992.

The comet's nucleus is 16 miles across, which is almost twice the size of the object that scientists believed wiped out the dinosaurs, NASA said.

When and where to watch the Perseids...

The Perseids occur during the warm nights of summer, making them easily visible from around the world, especially in the Northern Hemisphere. Meteors will be visible starting in the mid-to-late evening hours, as early as 9 p.m., and continue to get better into the pre-dawn hours, after 2 a.m.

Earlier in the night, skywatchers have the opportunity to spot a rare earthgrazer, a long, slow and colorful meteor moving across the horizon. In the Southern Hemisphere, meteors will begin to appear around midnight.

"If those hours seem daunting, not to worry! You can go out after dark, around 9 p.m. local time, and see a few Perseids," NASA said. "Just know that you won't see nearly as many as you would had you gone out during the early morning hours."

Weather permitting, NASA recommends finding a place with a clear view of a large swath of the sky. On the peak mornings this year, moonlight won't interfere with the show, with the moon only in its waxing crescent phase and 13% full, guaranteeing the sky remains dark enough to spot shooting stars.

Lie flat on your back and look up, allowing your eyes several minutes to adjust before taking in as much of the sky as possible for at least an hour. You won't need any special equipment or knowledge of the constellations to see the show.

The shower's peak isn't your last chance to spot the meteors — they can still be clearly seen for about 10 days after. Additionally, the Southern Delta Aquariid and Alpha Capricornid meteor showers are still active through mid-August, adding to the dazzling light show.

If you're not in a position to watch the Perseids, there are live streams available. NASA typically live streams the event on its Meteor Watch Facebook page, as does the Virtual Telescope Project.

Following the Perseids, the next meteor shower won't be until October, when the Orionids light up the sky.

I'm excited to look for these this year. For the first time since I lived at sea, I live in a place with a relatively dark and clear sky and can regularly see the stars; unlike my old house within Cleveland city limits which was closed in on all sides and felt like it was eternally overcast.

Imo fascinating.

I have a star/constellation app on my phone and on a few clear summer and/or fall nights when the sun goes down, anywhere between 9:30pm to 2am.....

.....I'll be on the back patio.

That app, or those like it, are pretty cool. When we were up north a few weeks ago we saw a pretty bright "something" in the sky. Brother brought his app up and it showed what it was. I don't even remember what it was right now, though.

Will be back in WV this weekend and again in August. Will be at a farmhouse out in the middle of nowhere. The stars always pop. The whole Milky Way is usually seen stretching across the sky. Fingers crossed for no clouds and good viewing.

I'm envious of that. The sky doesn't get dark enough to see the Milky Way here, but at least I do get to see a LOT more of the sky than I used to.

Down here you have to worry about hills and mountains obstructing much of the view. The article didn't get in to it, but position yourself where you get a good view of the eastern sky. The shooters will appear to come out of he northeast towards the southwest.

As was said, early morning is the best. That is when the shooters will more or less be heading in to the wind...towards earths rotation. That is your best chance to see many with sky wide streaks of light, and maybe a fireball if you are lucky.

I have been interested in astronomy since my 1st telescope at age 10 or so. I have always been a early riser. Many times over the years, I have scouted out my location to set up my blanket to lay down and gone out at 2-3AM to watch for a few hours.

Naked eye viewing is the only way to do it. Those with a tripod and camera that allows a open end shutter speed can get some really cool photo's. I have taken a few over the years.

So find your location, dust off the old thermos, fill it with bean juice, pack a few pop tarts and head out in mid August for a really good show....if it's clear. You have a few days during the peak.


OH....get some red cellophane to cover your flashlight so you don't ruin your night vision if you need light for some reason.

Perseid meteor shower 2021: When, where & how to see it
By Sarah Lewin, Space.com Staff, Chelsea Gohd

The bright Perseids are perhaps the most popular meteor shower of the year, and they've just begun! With clear skies, you could see what some consider the most spectacular cosmic light show.

Spectators can expect to see the greatest number of meteors during the shower's peak between Aug. 11-13 this year, according to Earthsky.org.

Every year, Earth passes through the path of Comet Swift-Tuttle from July 17 to Aug. 24, with the shower's peak — when Earth passes through the densest, dustiest area — occurring Aug. 11-13. That means you'll see the most meteors in the shortest amount of time near that time. Years without moonlight see higher rates of meteors per hour, and in outburst years (such as in 2016) the rate can be between 150-200 meteors an hour.

This year, you can expect to see up to 60 meteors per hour at the shower's peak, according to Earthsky.org.

This NASA sky map shows where to look to spot the Perseid meteor shower of 2020, which peaks before dawn on Aug. 12, 2020. (Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)

Last year, the bright moonlight didn't obscure the view of the meteor shower too badly, but the moon's glow is a continuing concern for skywatchers looking for a clear view. Even though the Perseids are especially bright, moonlight can make viewing a bit tricky.

You can see the Perseid meteor shower best in the Northern Hemisphere and down to the mid-southern latitudes, and all you need to catch the show is darkness, somewhere comfortable to sit and a bit of patience.

To best see the Perseids, go to the darkest possible location and lean back to observe as much sky as possible directly above you.

The best time to look for meteors is in the pre-dawn hours. While the meteors will peak between August 11-13, they typically start streaking through the sky on July 17 and will be visible from this start date through the peak and typically through 10 days or so after the peak, according to Earthsky.org.

While the peak viewing days are typically your best shot to see the sky speckled with bright meteors, even outside of the Perseids peak timeframe, you should be able to spot a few meteors between midnight and dawn any morning the week before or after this date, according to NASA. To see the meteors, look up and to the north. Those in southern latitudes can look toward the northeast to see more meteors.

Skywatchers looking out for the Perseids might also see some stray meteors from the Delta Aquariid meteor shower

Gallery: More Amazing Perseid Meteor Shower 2019 Photos

What causes the Perseids?

The annual Perseid meteor shower occurs when the Earth passes through a stream of dust from the Comet Swift-Tuttle, as shown in this orbit diagram. (Image credit: Sky & Telescope Magazine)
This beloved, annual sky spectacle is caused by the comet Swift-Tuttle. Comet Swift-Tuttle is the largest object known to repeatedly pass by Earth; its nucleus is about 16 miles (26 kilometers) wide. It last passed nearby Earth during its orbit around the sun in 1992, and the next time will be in 2126.

But it won't be forgotten in the meantime, because Earth passes through the dust and debris it leaves behind every yea.

When you sit back to watch a meteor shower, you're actually seeing the pieces of comet debris heat up as they enter the atmosphere and burn up in a bright burst of light, streaking a vivid path across the sky as they travel at 37 miles (59 kilometers) per second.

When they're in space, these pieces of debris are called "meteoroids," but when they reach Earth's atmosphere, they're designated as "meteors." If a piece makes it all the way down to Earth without burning up, it graduates to "meteorite." Most of the meteors in the Perseids are much too small for that; they're about the size of a grain of sand.

What do you need to see them?

The key to seeing a meteor shower is "to take in as much sky as possible," Cooke said. Go to a dark area, in the suburbs or countryside, and prepare to sit outside for a few hours. It takes about 30 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark, and the longer you wait outside, the more you'll see. A rate of 60-70 meteors per hour, for instance, means around one meteor per minute, including faint streaks along with bright, fireball-generating ones.

Some skywatchers plan to camp out to see the Perseid meteor shower, but at the very least, viewers should bring something comfortable to sit on, some snacks and some bug spray. Then, just relax and look upward for the celestial show.

https://www.space.com/amp/32868-perseid-meteor-shower-guide.html