Stargazers set sights on meteors (starting August 11)
By James Urquhart http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/6940962.stm
The Perseid meteor shower is an annual event Shooting stars are set to grace the night sky with a spectacularlight display this weekend. The annual Perseid meteor shower will reach its peak during the early hours of Monday, but it will be visible from Saturday night until Tuesday morning. The celestial show will be most apparent in the north-eastern part ofthe sky near the Perseus constellation.If the skies remain clear, it will offer stargazers the bestopportunity for a few years to see the Perseids. The shower this year coincides with a new Moon, providing skywatchers with the dark skies necessary for excellent observingconditions . . .
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Meteor shower visible on April 21The Philippine Star 04/15/2007
If the evening sky permits, star gazers should watch out for meteorshowers on the night of April 21 up to early morning the next day,the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical ServicesAdministration (Pagasa) said yesterday. Every year in late April, the earth passes through the dusty tail of Comet Thatcher, causing a strong meteor shower known as the Lyrids. "The best time to look, no matter where you live, is during the hoursbefore dawn on Saturday morning, April 22. If you wake before 2 a.m.and watch the sky until sunrise, you can expect to see at least adozen meteors," according to spaceweather.com."Counts typically range from five to 20 meteors per hour. Observersin the country will see more than observers in the city," it added.Pagasa said the Lyrids, the oldest known meteor shower, has beenobserved for more than 2,600 years. Chinese records say "stars felllike rain" in the shower of 687 B.C. In recent times, however, theLyrids have generally been weak. This year, the shower peaks on the night of April 21 up to the earlymorning of April 22. However, according to the National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration (NASA), there is going to be a nearly full moon thisApril 22, making it hard for meteor lovers to see faint meteors. –Helen Flores
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