Rise and shine! Tomorrow, Wednesday (August 12, 2009) beginning at around 5:00 a.m. will be the best viewing for the Perseid Meteor Shower. What better way to begin our study of science and astronomy, then to view 100 meteors flying through space!
Up to 100 meteors per hour are expected to paint the sky with fiery streaks as the Earth passes through the dust trail of Comet Swift-Tuttle, which was first discovered in 1862 when Abraham Lincoln was president. The display could be the most vibrant in years.
The comet is a giant iceberg made up of ice, rock and dust particles. Dust particles the size of sand slowly have been eroding away from the comet every time it approaches the sun, leaving a trail of debris that the Earth's orbit intersects once every year.
Praying for clear skies!
Okay, we'll be looking upward...yawn!
ReplyDeleteHey we were just talking about this shower and wondering if we will even be able to see it here in the city suburbs, thru the smog.
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