Moment of Geek - Perseid Meteor Shower
I wrote a post for The Rachel Maddow Show on the Perseid Meteor Shower, peaking tonight!
Heads up, space fans! We are in the midst of one of the best annual meteor showers - the Perseids, so called because they appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus.
The Perseids are well loved because they are fairly reliable and because you don’t have to get frostbite to see them, like some other meteor showers. The only sacrifice they require on your part is to either stay up quite later or get up before the Sun. This year, I’d actually recommend the latter since the moon is waxing and will be full next week. We astronomers aren’t usually anti-Moon, but you’d be surprised at how much of the sky a bright moon can wash out. It’s like nature’s own form of light pollution.
Read the full article here.
