Perseid Meteor Shower Viewing Opportunities In East Leinster

Edited byMark Dunphy

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Image NASA

Astronomy Ireland has said that Thursday 11th and Friday 12th August will present the best opportunity for Irish stargazers to catch a glimpse of the Perseid Meteor Shower.

Irish Weather Online forecaster Peter O’Donnell said that skies will clear across much of east Leinster early tonight but that increasing cloud elsewhere will inhibit viewing opportunities. Cloud cover will increase across east Leinster after midnight.

The Perseids have been observed for around 2000 years, and are the result of Earth passing through a cloud of dust left behind Comet Swift-Tuttle. As Earth moves through this cloud, the particles fall into our atmosphere and burn up, creating spectacular streaks of light in the sky, known as meteors or shooting stars.

This shower is named after the constellation Perseus, from which the meteors appear to come from in the sky. If you trace back the path of a Perseid, you will find that it appears to come from a point in the north east, maybe halfway between the horizon and the zenith (the point straight above your head).

Astronomy Ireland is taking part in a Nationwide Perseid Watch, where members of the public are being urged to simply count the number of meteors – or shooting stars – they see. For more visit astronomy.ie

The Perseids will appear to originate from a point in the north-east. Image Astronmy Ireland

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