Perseid meteor shower visible tonight - Aug.12

Astronomy enthusiasts in the country could watch out for the annual Perseid meteor shower this month, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said yesterday.

Pagasa said the Perseid meteor shower would peak on the night of Aug. 12 with hundreds of meteors shower per hour that can be observed under most favorable sky conditions.

“Occasionally, an exceptional shower may show tens or even hundreds of meteors per minute, but around 50 meteors per hour is more typical,” Pagasa said.

According to the weather bureau, the Perseid meteor shower is best seen during Aug. 10 to 14 each year.

“Under most favorable clear sky condition, there may be 60 to 100 meteors per hour,” it said.

The Perseid meteor shower radiates out from the constellation Perseus, which is located in the eastern horizon during August.

The famous Perseid meteor shower has been observed for about 2,000 years, with the first known information on these meteors coming from the Far East.

The term Perseid refers to the star constellation of Perseus.

Meteors in a shower appear to come from one area of the sky, but they melt as soon as they enter the earth’s atmosphere due to extreme heat.

source: philstar.com