An artist's depiction of a shooting star...
Click on image for full size
Courtesy of Corel Photography
1998 Perseids Meteor Shower
News story originally written on August 10, 1998
This summer (and its movies!) has brought with it
many questions about things hitting the Earth. Well, looks like this isn't just for the movies! The Perseids meteor shower peaks on August 12th. Over 80
'shooting stars' per hour could be visible at dark viewing sites in the northern hemisphere.
On August 12, the Moon is scheduled to rise at 11:30 p.m. EDT. Since it will be in gibbous phase, it will make the dimmer meteors harder to see. So the best viewing time may be before the Moon rises on the night of August 12th. To see the shower, look northeast towards the constellation of Perseus (it is close to Casseopieia - the familiar 'W' or 'M' of the northern sky). Remember to give your eyes time to adjust to the dark and bring that mosquito repellant!
You might also be interested in:
It was another exciting and frustrating year for the space science program. It seemed that every step forward led to one backwards. Either way, NASA led the way to a great century of discovery. Unfortunately,
...more
The Space Shuttle Discovery lifted off from Kennedy Space Center on October 29th at 2:19 p.m. EST. The weather was great as Discovery took 8 1/2 minutes to reach orbit. This was the United States' 123rd
...more
A moon was discovered orbiting the asteroid, Eugenia. This is only the second time in history that a satellite has been seen circling an asteroid. A special mirror allowed scientists to find the moon
...more
Will Russia ever put the service module for the International Space Station in space? NASA officials want an answer from the Russian government. The necessary service module is currently waiting to be
...more
A coronal mass ejection (CME) happened on the Sun early last month. The material that was thrown out from this explosion passed the ACE spacecraft. The SWICS instrument on ACE has produced a new and very
...more
J.S. Maini of the Canadian Forest Service called forests the "heart and lungs of the world." This is because forests filter air and water pollution, absorb carbon dioxide, release oxygen, and maintain
...more
In late April through mid-May 2002, all five naked-eye planets are visible at the same time in the night sky! This is includes Mercury which is generally very hard to see. You won't want to miss this!
...more
