Perseids in August: Now the shooting star summer begins! | Life & Knowledge
In August, it’s always worth looking up at the night sky!
One of the months of the year with the most meteor showers is approaching: In August, the Perseid meteor shower leaves many cosmic luminous trails in the sky.
Dr. Björn Voss, Director of Planetarium Hamburgexplains why the conditions for shooting stars are currently so good.
Shooting stars in August
The conditions for shooting stars were already optimal in July, but the big shooting star fireworks display is still to come.
In August, the Earth will approach the dust trail of the comet Swift-Tuttle. If visibility is good, you will be able to see numerous shooting stars in the sky. The dust storm will reach its peak on August 12th.
Shooting star over Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado in 2018
Then you can see up to 100 shooting stars per hour. But you have to look closely because the celestial lights are moving very quickly, at up to 60 km per hour.
Dr. Voss explains: “The Perseids owe their name to their radiant in the Constellation Perseus, near the distinctive 'celestial W' of Cassiopeia. After reaching its peak, the prolific meteor shower remains Summer sky still available until August 24th.”