Those who do not want to miss the highlight of the starry sky in August should direct their gaze towards the firmament in the hours after midnight. One of the greatest natural spectacles takes place there, especially around August 12th – the Perseids meteor shower reaches maximum firepower.
Cosmic dust particles hit the earth’s atmosphere above us like raindrops and create traces of light. It is the burning debris of a comet.
“Every year in August, the earth crosses the orbit of the comet Swift-Tuttle as it orbits the sun, crossing the ‘cross street of dust particles’ it left behind. Some of the particles that burn up about a hundred kilometers above the ground are bright enough to be visible over the city – these meteors often glow for a long time, ”explains Prof. Thomas W. Kraupe, director of the Planetarium Hamburg in conversation with BILD.
Tears for the executed St. Laurentius
The annual shooting star show in the summer sky has been observed for a long time. Catholics associated it with St. Lawrence. This martyr was executed in Rome on August 10th, 258th.
According to legend, his tears of fire fall from heaven every year at this time – the “Laurentius tears”.
The shooting stars shoot across the night sky over Garmisch-PartenkirchenPhoto: Getty Images
With a little patience, star friends discovered and discover in the nights from August 5th to 15th such a shooting star every few minutes – including some very bright ones. The majority of the weaker meteors can only be seen from a dark location away from the abundance of light in the big city.
“If you extend their glowing traces back, they all seem to emit from a point in the northeast, the ‘radiant’ in the constellation Perseus on the border with the ‘celestial W’. This is why this annual meteor shower is also known as the Perseids, ”continues Prof. Kraupe.
Maximum in the morning hours of August 12th
The entire period of activity of the Perseids extends from July 17th to August 24th with its maximum in the morning hours of August 12th.
Unfortunately the light of the crescent moon, which rises around midnight, will affect the “show” until dawn. But many of the Perseids should be bright enough to overcome the moonlight. Ideally, up to 40 or 50 meteors per hour can still be observed.
And also in the late evening of August 12th, before the moon rises, another good observation window is available for this shooting star fireworks display.
“The most important thing is a location that is as dark as possible and free of disruptions or obstructions,” says Prof. Kraupe. “And remember that it takes your eyes around 20 minutes to adjust to the darkness of the night. Take at least an hour, because the meteors come in spurts and we often experience lulls in between. Let the starry splendor take its toll on you, because all good things come to those who can wait. These shooting stars move in different directions and whiz across the sky in front of numerous constellations. They are tiny, glowing comet fragments. So there is no way of predicting exactly how many you will see on any given night. “
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiW2h0dHBzOi8vcGxlZGdldGltZXMuY29tL3BlcnNlaWRzLXdpdGgtbW9zdC1maXJlcG93ZXItdG9kYXktZmFsbGluZy1zdGFycy1yYWluLWJ5LW1vb25saWdodC_SAV9odHRwczovL3BsZWRnZXRpbWVzLmNvbS9wZXJzZWlkcy13aXRoLW1vc3QtZmlyZXBvd2VyLXRvZGF5LWZhbGxpbmctc3RhcnMtcmFpbi1ieS1tb29ubGlnaHQvYW1wLw?oc=5
2020-08-11 07:31:04Z
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