Explore the Universe - Meteor Showers

The Perseid Meteor Shower is long over but there is always another shower around the corner.  In fact the Draconids are peaking this weekend.  I do not anticipate it being very exciting.  The Full Moon shines brightly that evening and will drown out any faint meteors.  On occasion, throughout the 20th century, the Draconids have peaked in the several thousand per hour.  This is known as a meteor storm.  It never hurts to look up on the evening of a meteor shower in case you get lucky.

An optional observation on the Explore the Universe list is a meteor shower.  It is described as follows:

Sporadic meteors can be seen on most dark, clear nights. Meteor showers are regular events occurring at different times throughout the year with high rates of meteors appearing to come from a specific zone or radiant in the sky. Look for a dark moonless night and be prepared to stay up late, as the best observing is usually after midnight.

A meteor shower is caused when the Earth passes through a stream of debris that is typically left over from a comet.  When a comet approaches the Sun the ice from it vaporizes leaving a stream of debris mostly the size of dust particles.  The name of the meteor shower is indicated by the constellation they seem to radiate from.

A group of about 20 of us spent time East of Calgary where we could see a less light polluted northeastern sky.  It was before midnight and we perhaps caught a dozen Perseids.  I decided to test the idea that the best observing is after midnight.  From the backyard between 2-2:30 I witnessed 9 meteors radiating from Perseus.  Given the light pollution from the city and strong waning gibbous Moon, 9 seemed pretty good.

There are many ways to record a meteor shower.  The most common way is just to sit back on the grass and just watch the amazing view.  Some people do time-lapse photography to catch as many as they can.

In the link below, Alan Dyer discusses some techniques for photographing a meteor shower.

https://amazingsky.net/2015/08/06/how-to-see-shoot-the-perseids/

However, if you want, you can make your own chart of observations.  There are several citizen science projects involving meteor showers.  You can submit your results that will be put into a database that scientists can use to study this phenomenon.  This was the first time I actually made a record.  I guess you could call it practice for the next one.  Each arrow on the below image represents the direction and magnitude of the meteors.

Perseid Meteor Shower

Stay tuned for upcoming meteor showers.  The Orionids will peak later this month and the Moon will be tucked away near the Sun during the night.  The best thing is, they peak on a Friday night!  Let's hope the weather is good!

Be sure to check out the Fish Creek Star Night!  This is a free, fun activity for people of all ages.  Come down to the Fish Creek Environmental Learning Centre for a great interpretive exhibit of nature and the sky!  Check out the link below for more details!

https://www.facebook.com/events/1765114146854576/