Perseids Meteor Shower 2009

[Sanurian]

The Perseids meteor shower is one of the most famous (and often spectacular).

It was first documented about 2,000 years ago by the Chinese. It "starts" in mid July and runs to late August, but the best time for viewing is around the peak. This year's peak is predicted to be August 12 around 15.00 hours UT (Universal Time). The peak last year came a little late so a repeat is possible (maybe August 13). Nobody really knows.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the most intense part of the meteor shower is expected to commence after the Sun sets in the west on August 11, 2009, and continue on to just before the Sun rises on August 12th. Ten to 15 meteors per hour is typical rising to 50-80 at the peak.

For observers in the Southern Hemisphere, the radiant of the Perseids does not extend above the horizon. (The "radiant" is the point in space where they seem to come from.) Depending how far South of the Equator you are, you might only see a small number of meteors. However, I know of people in Australia even further South than the latitude of Sydney who have had rewarding experiences.

Unfortunately for everybody this year, we have a half gibbous Moon to contend with. Still, you should be able to see the meteors shoot across the sky from any portion of it, (not just the radiant).

The image below is a view of the night sky looking North from Sanur on August 12 about 2 am Bali time. I've marked the approximate location of the radiant.

I hope we all see something.
:D



This image is hosted on http://www.flickr.com

[fordprefect]

Hey thanks for the heads up, now it's penciled in on the calendar so I won't miss it (hopefully) this time.

[Sanurian]

And fordprefect

Hey thanks for the heads up, now it's penciled in on the calendar so I won't miss it (hopefully) this time.

You're welcome. Are you looking forward to Christmas?

:D

[fordprefect]

I've missed the boat and Google it seems is not my friend.

Mostly I look forward to Christmas, with certain reservations of course.....but you meant the character in H2G2 or...?

[Sanurian]

Somebody wrote something weird here yesterday about postponing Christmas. That message has been removed. I added a comment, (also since removed). Hence my reference about Christmas to you (fordprefect). This thread now sounds a bit disjointed as a result.

Keep your eyes open for them there meteors. I hope there are no big pieces of debris as the planet flies through the cosmic garbage! Most are about the size of a grain of sand. Occasionally, there are bigger pieces that don't burn up in the atmosphere and hit the ground, (sometimes catastrophically).

8)

[fordprefect]

Right, thanks, S.

I've always felt humans trying to move through space in tinfoil lozenges was an endeavor limited by the presence of space junk hurtling through the void at mind-numbing velocity.

On occasion, looks good from down here though.

[Markit]

Thanks Sanurian I'll try to have a look around 2pm.

What with all the other things that seem to have importance in the Balinese list of religious objects/events you'd think they would make some not of this event but I guess they all have to get up too early and go to work.

[Sanurian]

Thanks Sanurian I'll try to have a look around 2pm.

Good luck with that...I mean looking at "2 pm".

We have a gibbous Moon at present which still washes out the night sky a bit. The Sun is a lot brighter than the Moon - that's why we can't see other stars during the day time.

What with all the other things that seem to have importance in the Balinese list of religious objects/events you'd think they would make some note of this event but I guess they all have to get up too early and go to work.

Most Balinese I've met have little or no knowledge of astronomy. Maybe that's why there's no interest. The same could be said about many Westerners.

In case I've confused other people, I'll try to be more clear.

The "peak" is predicted to be on August 12 around 15.00 hours UT. That doesn't mean that's the only time to watch the show.

The radiant I drew on my map doesn't mean that's the only place to look, (the meteors should be visible anywhere in the sky at the time).

"Universal Time" is practically the same as GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). Bali is 8 hours ahead of Greenwich (GMT + 8 hours). Therefore, 15.00 hours UT means 23.00 hours in Bali (11 pm).

The hard part is finding a good location to view from, preferably away from city lights with no mountains blocking the horizon. North Bali should be pretty good.

Down South should be OK, too, if you can find a a dark enough spot. There are some rice paddies near my house and very few artificial lights. Anything like that is good. If you can find a higher spot, so much the better.

Good luck to everybody interested enough to have a try.

Conclusion: Find a nice dark place with an uncluttered view of the North, any time between 10 pm and dawn and be patient.

This is, after all, The International Year Of Astronomy.

:D

[chilli]

Perfect !

Thanks Sanurian, I will be watching !

[fordprefect]

Ne Perseids for us I'm afraid, Smoke from the La Brea fire http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lano...unty-fire.html http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2 ... -fire.html obscures at the moment, and when the sun shines there's an infernal cast to everything.... ah well