Up to 150 shooting stars per hour: Here you can admire the Perseids in the sky
Created: 08/09/2022, 05:40
By: Max Partelly
A special phenomenon for star friends are the Perseids.
In August, shooting stars can be admired in the night sky every year.
Munich - A shooting star fulfills wishes, so they say.
But what if the night sky is filled with countless shooting stars?
What that means can probably not be answered reliably.
But what is certain is that it is a beautiful and impressive phenomenon.
If you want to see such an event with your own eyes, you should write down the name of the Perseids.
Between July 17th and August 24th, the starry shower can be admired in the night sky when the weather is good.
During this period, Earth crosses the orbit of comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle.
Its fragments enter the atmosphere and burn up there.
The nights between August 9th and 13th are particularly recommended.
The showers are expected to be heaviest here in 2022.
Up to 150 shooting stars per hour can be seen here.
That's an average of five shooting stars every two minutes.
Rare celestial phenomenon: What time can the Perseids be seen?
The shooting star showers of the Perseids are sometimes very popular because they sometimes bring with them very bright shooting stars that are easily visible.
Some of them can already be seen at nightfall, when the sign of the zodiac Perseus - from which direction the shooting stars are coming - is even closer to the horizon in a north-northeast direction (around 9 o'clock).
During the course of the night, the constellation and with it the shooting star showers migrate to the east, where it curves further into the night sky and finally begins to migrate north again far above.
It doesn't really matter where in Germany you watch the spectacle from.
Basically, the Perseids are visible everywhere in the northern hemisphere.
South of the equator, the shower of falling stars can also be seen under certain circumstances - but only sparsely.
From the name of the constellation, from the direction of which the shooting stars come, the name of the phenomenon of the Perseids is derived - namely the constellation of Perseus.
Shooting Star Showers in Germany: What is the best way to see the Perseids?
You don't need a telescope or other technical equipment to see the Perseids in the night sky.
You don't have to be a student of astrophysics either.
When the sky is clear, everyone can look up and be amazed.
However, there are a few tips that will make observing the Perseids perfect.
Tips for shooting star nights
Choose a low-light spot to watch
Adjust your eyes to the dark
Check the weather forecast in advance
Bring appropriate clothing (especially for cool nights)
Clear view in the direction of the shooting star shower (inform in advance about its position)
You really don't have to be a lover of space travel and the like to be amazed by a shooting star shower.
If you are on holiday in the southern hemisphere during the Perseid period, you don't have to miss out on a spectacle like this one.
This year there are similar spectacles in the night sky during the Orionids or the Draconids.
(mda)