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Strictly speaking, the Perseids have nothing to do with Perseus. The annual summer meteor shower owes its name to the constellation of the Greek mythological hero from which it appears to fall.
However, the shooting stars actually originate from a comet with the somewhat unwieldy name 109P/Swift-Tuttle. Every year in mid-August, the Earth crosses its dust trail. This causes the small comet particles to enter the Earth’s atmosphere at high speed, where they burn up and become visible as bright trails of light. Some even briefly reach the brightness of Venus, the brightest planet in the night sky.
“Total failure”
This year, the meteor shower will reach its peak in the evening and night hours of August 12. But that’s when the moon will interfere. The maximum number of shooting stars, which is expected between 9:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m., is only three days after the full moon. According to the Vienna Working Group for Astronomy, this is practically a “total failure” because the bright moon outshines many shooting stars.
But it’s not quite as bad as that: after all, the shooting star shower is visible for more than a month. On the one hand, the first Perseids could already be seen in late July, and on the other hand, it’s not over after the unfortunately rather poorly visible peak. The Kuffner Observatory in Vienna, for example, recommends the five nights after the usual peak, before moonrise, for successful Perseid sightings. No aids are needed – it is best to observe the sky with the naked eye.
Get out of the city
But it’s not just when that matters, but also where. The motto is: as far away from cities as possible and, if possible, at high altitude. This is because the air is clearer and less hazy at higher altitudes, and surrounding mountains shield against disturbing stray light.
The recommendation from the experts at the Kuffner Observatory: “During the day, find a suitable observation spot and make sure that there is a viewing direction where practically only the sky can be seen. This can also be a vertical view of the zenith – provided you are comfortable on a lounger or picnic blanket. It is not so important which direction you observe in, as long as the sky is clear and dark there.”
Suitable locations include publicly accessible alpine pastures and high meadows, the Attersee-Traunsee Star Park, the Weinviertel Star Trail in Großmugl, and the various observatories and planetariums in the state.
The “quality” of the sky from which you want to view the Perseids can be tested in advance on clear nights: the constellation of the Little Dipper should be fully visible. If one star is missing from the box of the dipper, viewing is still possible to a limited extent. If more stars are missing from the Little Dipper, you will hardly see any shooting stars at this location.
Incidentally, the Perseids are also popularly known as the “Tears of St. Lawrence” – after the saint of the same name who met a cruel end. Emperor Valerian had him executed on a red-hot iron grate in 258. His feast day falls on August 10, right in the middle of the Perseid meteor shower.
Lunar eclipse
And if you’re not lucky enough to see anything in the August night sky, you can look forward to the next celestial event: the next total lunar eclipse will take place on September 7 – with local differences, it will be visible throughout Austria. Weather permitting, of course.
But if you spot a shooting star in the sky over the next few nights, you could make a wish.
- source: kurier.at/picture: pixabay.com
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