Perseids Meteor Shower - August 12, 2016

Coming soon is a good astronomical viewing event if you're willing to stay up into the wee hours of the morning.  In ten days the Perseids meteor shower will make its annual appearance.  The Perseids are a popular meteor shower to observe in the Northern Hemisphere as the weather is warmer for observing and they can be impressive at times with as many as 50-100 meteors per hour.  That's 1 - 2 per minute which is pretty good.

The red marks in the image above show where you should look in the sky to observe the Perseids.  They are called the Perseids because they appear to come from the constellation of Perseus.  Putting a damper on this year's shower is the presence of the moon.  It's out in the evening, making the sky brighter, and reducing the number of meteors you can see.  The moon sets in the evening, so if you're willing to stay up past midnight, you'll still have a chance at observing a nice shower.  The best day to observe is Friday, August 12, 2016 in the morning, around 1 - 2 AM.  Yes, it's a school/work day, so I'll probably skip this shower, but if you're more adventurous than me, give it a shot.