Viewing Tips for Peak of Perseid Meteor Shower Tonight

The Perseid meteor shower is upon us. It is  the most famous and active meteor shower of the year with up to 80 meteors an hour leaving long trails across the sky. 

Peak nights are tonight and tomorrow night. Unfortunately, the Moon is nearly full so that will wash out all but the brightest of meteors. Your best viewing time will be from about 4 a.m. until dawn begins at 5:45 a.m. The moon sets at 4:30 a.m. 

This meteor shower has been active since July 13th and lasts through August 26. The shower is generated by debris from Comet 109 P Swift Tuttle. This comet takes 130 years to orbit the Sun. It most recently passed through the Earth’s part of the solar system back in 1992, leaving lots of fresh comet debris that leads to particularly good showers. Mahalo to the Bishop Museum for this information. Happy viewing!