If you will be out camping this weekend make sure that you do not miss the Perseid Meteor Showers this weekend! August 10th and 11th will be the peak of the Perseid Meteor Showers this year. The best place to see them is while you are camping far up in the mountains where there is little to no light pollution. Campers should make a habit out of appreciating the stars when camping anyway but this weekend should be something special!
| Comet of Origin | 109P/Swift-Tuttle |
| Radiant | Constellation Perseus |
| Active | July 17th through August 24th, 2013 |
| Peak Activity | August 11th and August 12th, 2013 |
| Peak Activity Meteor Count | Up to 60 meteors per hour |
| Meteor Velocity | 37 miles per second |
| Notes | The Perseid Meteor Shower is known as one of the best meteor showers to observe, and this year is no different. A crescent moon will set shortly after midnight, leaving dark skies from late night until dawn. The Perseid meteors are typically fast and bright meteors that frequently leave trains. |
The Perseid Meteor Shower is perhaps the most beloved meteor shower of the year for the Northern Hemisphere. The shower builds gradually to a peak, often produces 50 to 100 meteors per hour in a dark sky at the peak, and, for us in Colorado, this shower comes when the weather is warm and we are up camping. The absolute best way to view the meteor shower. The Perseid Meteor Shower tends to strengthen in number as late night deepens into midnight. Typically the Perseid Meteor Shower will produce the most meteors in the early hours before dawn. They radiate will appear to be from a point in the constellation Perseus the Hero. As with all meteor shower radiant points, you don’t need to know Perseus to watch the shower; instead, the meteors appear in all parts of the sky. They are typically fast and bright meteors. They frequently leave persistent trains.
Every year, you can look for the Perseids around August 10-13. They combine with the Delta Aquarid shower to produce the year’s most dazzling display of shooting stars.
This year, the Perseid meteors will streak across the short summer nights on August 10-13 from late night until dawn, with little to no interference from the waxing crescent moon. During the peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower look to the northeast sky for the best view. If you will be camping make sure that you set aside some time, at least and hour or two, to watch what is sure to be an amazing meteor shower. If you are not going to be out camping, you should still take some time these evenings as the Perseid Meteor Shower will be visible even in light polluted cities weather you are camping or not.
