August 12, 2002

11:19 AM

Perseid Meteor Shower-(Peaks Sunday & Monday)"The August Perseids are among the strongest of the readily observed annual meteor showers, and at maximum activity can yield 50 or 60 meteors per hour. However, observers with exceptional sky conditions often record even larger numbers. Also, during an overnight watch, the Perseids are capable of producing a number of bright, flaring and fragmenting meteors, which leave fine trains in their wake."
posted by DailyBread (13 comments total)

I stood out on my driveway for about a half-hour last night, and saw one.

There's just too much light in my neighborhood to make meteor-gazing any fun.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 11:21 AM on August 12, 2002

Same here, I drove 20 minutes outside of the city yesterday and didn't see crap. I only post this cause last year I was in west Texas hillcountry where there are no city lights and the meteor shower was truly amazing.
posted by DailyBread at 11:27 AM on August 12, 2002

Yup, couldn't see anything in the suburban DC area. Nothing could beat the Leonid shower last year, anyway.
posted by emyd at 11:36 AM on August 12, 2002

I saw a couple saturday night in Oregon Ridge Park in Cockeysville,MD. They were having a concert festival there and I was lying on the hill staring into the sky while listening to Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. The sky was clear all day, so it was a perfect night for tunes and stargazing.
posted by stifford at 11:43 AM on August 12, 2002

I have to drive to Edmonton tomorrow morning/tonight, I think I may leave a little earlier than planned...
posted by jkaczor at 12:10 PM on August 12, 2002

no spoilers please people ; )
anyhoo, i got the answer right on the 'V' dvd pop-up add! (from the link)
posted by asok at 1:00 PM on August 12, 2002

More info from Sky & Telescope. Good luck, and dark, clear skies to those of you who'll be watching!
posted by Songdog at 1:21 PM on August 12, 2002

My Spaceweather.com alert notes both meteors and the Space Station--whoo hoo! I've been wanting to see that.
posted by y2karl at 4:51 PM on August 12, 2002

They were pretty spectacular in upstate NY. I counted about 15 in the ten minutes it took the mosquitos and bats to drive me indoors. For my latitude the trick was to do it late (or early depending on how you look at it) enough that Perseus was high enough above the horizon.

What I really want to see is an Iridium flare there is even a schedule available.
posted by cedar at 5:26 PM on August 12, 2002

As of 9pm (ET) in northern NJ I can see nothing. Too much haze, too much light pollution :(.
posted by Songdog at 6:06 PM on August 12, 2002

The thread on the last Leonid shower was good stuff (even if I was posting on 27 hours without sleep).
posted by NortonDC at 6:22 PM on August 12, 2002

whiiiiiiiiine. Hazed in here (NJ, USA) and I can't even see a single star.
posted by realjanetkagan at 10:15 PM on August 12, 2002

Tuesday night in NJ was better. Some haze, but I could see down to about third magnitude near the zenith. I saw one bright Perseid. Anyone having better luck?
posted by Songdog at 7:28 AM on August 14, 2002