The moon’s shadow will descend upon Earth on Wednesday, and some will bear witness to a total solar eclipse. But the universe won’t stop there: At night, nature’s fireworks will accent the sky as the Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak.
According to the American Meteor Society, the Perseids have been active since July 17 and will continue through Aug. 24. The shower crests Wednesday night into Thursday morning.
Fast, bright streaks with long, colorful tails make the Perseids a summer favorite among stargazers. Unlike the eclipse, which is visible only across a narrow swath of Russia, as well as Greenland, Iceland, Spain and a tiny corner of Portugal, the Perseids can be seen on a clear night by anyone in the Northern Hemisphere. And because solar eclipses occur during the new moon phase of the lunar cycle, there will be no moonlight to wash out views of the shower.
Where do the Perseids come from?
Meteor showers occur when Earth passes through the rubble trailing a comet or an asteroid orbiting the sun. This debris, which can include particles as small as grains of sand, leaves behind a glowing stream of light as it burns up in Earth’s atmosphere.
The Perseids are caused by Comet Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1862. “It’s huge as far as comets go,” said Peter Jenniskens, an astronomer at the SETI Institute in California. “It’s twice the size of the comet that ended the dinosaurs.”
Swift-Tuttle completes one orbit every 133 years. As it nears the sun, the comet melts, releasing material that eventually spreads along the path of its orbit. Earth passes through the debris every summer.
Many meteor showers occur annually and last for days or weeks. But these showers reach peak activity within a small window of time, when Earth crosses the densest part of the cosmic debris. The peak is the best time to look for a meteor shower.
How can I watch the Perseids?
Meteors belonging to a specific shower appear to come from the same point in the sky. The Perseids radiate from the constellation Perseus, which is visible in the north.
Skywatchers can catch the shower on Wednesday after sunset or on Thursday before sunrise. But what you see changes with the time of night.
The evening shower will be low in the sky because Perseus will be close to the horizon. One meteor will be visible every four minutes, according to Dr. Jenniskens, and many will be faint. But the ones that do show up will have “very nice, long streaks,” he said.
Closer to dawn, Perseus will have risen higher in the sky. The Perseids will shower at a higher rate, about one fireball per minute, but appear as short, swift tracks, Dr. Jenniskens said.
The best way to see a meteor shower is under a clear, dark sky. Planetariums, local astronomy clubs or maps like this one can help you figure out where to go to escape excessive light. Dr. Jenniskens recommends dressing in warm clothes, reclining in a lawn chair and enjoying the sounds of night while scanning the heavens for meteors.
“It’s really all about the anticipation,” he said. “It’s fun to wait and, who knows, the next minute something really bright may pop up.”
Can I see the Perseids during the eclipse?
The total solar eclipse will be visible across parts of Russia, Greenland, Iceland, Spain and Portugal. Over these regions, totality — when the moon completely blocks the sun from view — will thrust the sky into a deep twilight.
The best time to catch a meteor is when the sky is at its darkest, usually between midnight and sunrise. And while planets and bright stars will become visible during totality, it probably won’t be dark enough to see the Perseids. During the day, Perseus will be very low in the sky or partly below the horizon, making the shower even more difficult to catch.
You may see a meteor from elsewhere during the eclipse, and sometimes streaks are bright enough to be visible even in the full light of day. “But those are rare,” Dr. Jenniskens said. “If you want to see these really bright ones, you have to just be patient and watch for a while.”
What else will be in the sky that night?
While looking for the Perseids, keep an eye out for the Alpha Capricornids and the Southern Delta Aquarids, two other active meteor showers. Both reached their peaks at the end of July, but you can still catch some of their streaks at night.
Meteors from different showers can be distinguished by where they come from in the sky. While the Perseids will originate from the north, the Southern Delta Aquarids and the Alpha Capricornids will radiate from the south.
These showers also have different speeds. Streaks from the Perseids will race across the stars at around 37 miles per second. The Southern Delta Aquarids are slower, at 25 miles per second, and the Alpha Capricornids are even more sluggish, at 14 miles per second.