The annual Perseid Meteor shower to light up the night skies this week according to NASA. Up to 200 meteors per hour will hit the Earth’s atmosphere at a speed of 59 kilometers per second which can be seen in the form of flashes of light.
“Forecasters are predicting a Perseid outburst this year with double normal rates on the night of August 11-12,” said Bill Cooke from NASA.
“Under perfect conditions, rates could soar to 200 meteors per hour,” added Bill Cooke.
Each Perseid Meteor is a tiny piece of the comet Swift-Tuttle, an ancient comet, which orbits the sun every 133 years. When Earth ventures through trails of debris left behind bu the above mentioned comet, the tiny pieces known as Perseid Meteors hits Earth’s atmosphere and seen in the form of flashes of light.
The meteors seems to fly out of the constellation Perseus, reason why these meteors named Perseid. “The meteors you’ll see this year are from comet flybys that occurred hundreds if not thousands of years ago,” said Bill Cooke. “They have travelled billions of miles before their kamikaze run into Earth’s atmosphere,” he also added.
You can see the Perseid meteor shower between midnight and dawn on the morning of August 12. “Allow about 45 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark. Lie on your back and look straight up. Increased activity may also be seen on August 12-13,” said NASA.