Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks Wednesday Night

The upcoming Perseids will be the meteor shower of the year.  Although it has been ongoing since early July, it's set to really ramp up over the next few nights---reaching its peak late Wednesday night into early Thursday morning.

(Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

The annual Perseid meteor shower is often regarded as the brightest meteor shower.  What makes this year's even more special is that it'll coincide with the new moon phase eliminating the glare of moonlight.

Some additional Perseid meteor shower information:

• result of space debris from the tail of the Swift-Tuttle comet
• feature fast (37 miles per second) and bright meteors that frequently leave trains
• 50 to 100 meteors per hour during its peak--expect to see at least one meteor every few minutes or so

Viewing tips:

• get outside the city---the darker the better
• allow 20 minutes or so for your eyes to adjust
• NASA says later in the night, the part of the sky where the meteors originate will also be higher overhead, giving you a better view
• position yourself facing towards the northeast sky--near the constellations Cassiopeia and Perseus

As for the viewing conditions, high pressure building its way east will lead to mostly clear skies across the state---and the majority of the east coast for that matter.  All things considered, this shower is definitely something worth checking out.  I'll post a livestream link Wednesday night for anyone that wants to watch online.  

06z GFS cloud cover forecast for 2am Thursday

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