Everyone is talking about the celestial show, which peaks in mid-August. What are meteors? What makes the Perseids special? And when and how is it best to watch them this year?
By: Anat Shapira, website Davidson Institute for Science Education
Every summer, in mid-August, people gather in dark places to watch the “shooting stars” show: lines of light that cut through the darkness, disappearing in a second and sometimes leaving behind a glowing trail that lasts for a few more seconds, and sometimes a few minutes. This is The Perseids shower – One of the most famous and impressive meteor showers of the year.
This year, the shower is expected to peak on the night of August 12-13. The moon will be in the winter so its light will be almost non-existent. From a dark location, under a cloudless sky, you can expect to see dozens of meteors per hour at the shower's peak.
Is it a plane? Is it a star? Is it a crumb in the atmosphere!
The common name “shooting star” does not do meteors scientific justice. What we see in a meteor shower are not stars, and they are not falling. Most of the stars we see in the night sky are very distant suns, while the streak of light we see in a meteor shower is created right here, inside our atmosphere, just a few dozen kilometers above us.
You don't have to be a big star to make a meteoric entry either: What's responsible for the spectacular flashes are tiny particles, ranging in size from a grain of sand to a small stone. They typically weigh less than one gram, and they enter the atmosphere at tremendous speed.
Before entering the atmosphere, the particle is called MeteoroidThe streak of light created during the transit is called a meteor, and if part of it survives and reaches the ground, the remnant is called a meteorite.
In the case of the Perseid shower, meteorites are very rare. They are small, fragile particles, and the intense heating as they enter the atmosphere causes them to overheat and completely vaporize long before they can reach the ground.
The one responsible for the Perseid shower is Comet Swift-Tuttle (Swift–Tuttle). Comets, sometimes mistakenly called “comets,” are bodies composed primarily of ice and dust that orbit the Sun in an elliptical orbit. When they are relatively close to it, some of the ice evaporates, and the dust and particles within it scatter, forming the characteristic tail or trail of comets, which can reach enormous lengths.
Every year, in August, the Earth crosses the orbit of Comet Swift-Tuttle and enters the trail of particles that the comet left behind. So it’s not particles that fall on us – we get caught in their orbit. The particles hit the atmosphere one by one, and we see a meteor shower.
During the Perseid shower, we encounter particles that the comet left behind many years ago – sometimes centuries ago.
If you imagine the meteors’ paths backwards, they appear to come from the same point in the sky near the constellation Perseus—hence the name Perseids. But the meteors themselves don’t come from Perseus. They are created here, close to us, in Earth’s atmosphere.
The Perseid meteor shower is one of the most famous meteor showers, but almost every night you can see individual meteors, which are made up of dust particles and pieces of rock that randomly enter the atmosphere. In fact, every day, Dozens of tons of matter from space.
At certain times of the year, the number of meteors increases, when the Earth crosses a dense trail of particles left behind by a comet in its orbit around the Sun – and then we see a meteor shower.
Throughout the year, there are Many meters These include the Quadrantids in January, the Lyrids in April, and the Geminids in December. Most meteors are associated with regular comets whose orbits the Earth crosses every year, but there are also exceptions: The origin of the Geminids, for example, is the rocky body Phaethon, which is classified as an asteroid.
The Perseids are particularly famous for the combination of numerous and bright meteors with summer nights, when the chance of clear, cloudless skies is relatively high.
Meteoric physics
In the Perseid shower, particles enter the atmosphere at a tremendous speed of more than 210 kilometers per hour – fast enough to cross Israel from north to south in about eight seconds.
As they enter, they compress the air in front of them, and the air becomes very hot. Collisions with air molecules heat and erode the particle, and material evaporates from it. The atoms and molecules in the air and in the material vapor have a lot of energy, and when they release it, light is emitted.
The luminous streak we see is much larger than the dust grain that created it: it is a long, thin trail of glowing gas along the particle's path in the atmosphere.
Sometimes a larger body enters the atmosphere and creates an extremely bright meteor, known as a “fireball.” If the body breaks apart with an explosion and a strong flash, it is also called a bolide. Since it travels much faster than the speed of sound, it may create a shock wave that reaches the ground after a while and sounds like a loud boom.
Among the famous events of this type are the Bolide That lit up the sky of Chelyabinsk in Russia in 2013 and the explosion that occurred over the area Tunguska In Siberia in 1908. Another ancient body reached the ground and created the impressive meteor crater in Arizona about 50 years ago.
Such events are very rare and are not associated with meteor showers. Therefore, there is no reason to fear the Perseids: their particles are tiny and decay in the atmosphere long before they can reach the ground.
No telescope, thank you.
To view the Perseids, you don't need a telescope or binoculars. On the contrary: such devices only see a very small part of the sky, so they actually reduce the chance of catching a meteor. The most suitable equipment is your eyes, a dark place, a wide field of view, and a little patience.
Meteors don't appear at a constant rate. A few quiet minutes can pass, and then two or three will appear in a short period of time. You can't know exactly when and where the next meteor will be seen, and perhaps that's part of the magic of the phenomenon.
On the night of August 12-13, 2026, the conditions for the moon will be excellent. The peak of the shower is expected in the early morning, near the time when the sun will already be rising for us, but there is no need to wait for the peak: you can watch from late evening, and the rate of meteors is expected to increase as the night progresses.
Perseids will also be visible on the nights before and after peak, but at a slower rate. Under ideal conditions, you can expect a rate of up to About 100 meteors per hour At peak time, but nature by its very nature makes no promises – cloudiness, haze, and light pollution can greatly affect what we actually see.
Therefore, it is worth coming with realistic expectations and enjoying the trip and the company. In a dark, open area, there is an excellent chance of seeing bright lines in the sky throughout the night – small dust grains, which have circled the sun for centuries, penetrate the atmosphere at great speed and momentarily draw a streak of light.
If you want, you can also make a wish – science has no objection to this.
Extended Questions and Answers
Itay Nevo, the chief writer on the Davidson Institute's website on space issues and the author of the scientific trivia quiz "Brainwashing", explains to the Hidan website some of the important details you need to know before coming to observe the Perseids.
What is the best practical viewing window in Israel, given that the theoretical peak is expected between 05:00 and 07:00, when morning twilight begins at that time?
"Indeed, at the peak of the shower, dawn twilight will already begin in Israel. Therefore, the best time to watch the Perseids will be shortly before the peak, during the night between Wednesday and Thursday. As the night progresses and until the beginning of morning twilight, more meteors are expected to be visible, but quite a few of them should also be visible around midnight and even earlier. The Earth's passage through the dust trail left by Comet Swift-Tuttle is not an event of seconds, and therefore many Perseids can be seen even on the nights before and after the shower's peak."
How many meteors can a viewer actually expect to see from a dark location in Israel, and could predictions of a lower than normal rate or an encounter with an ancient dust trail affect this year's shower?
"In the Perseid shower, under very good conditions, it is possible to reach a rate of about 80–100 meteors per hour. This year, the lunar conditions are excellent: the shower occurs at the new moon, and the moon is not expected to add light to the night sky. Optimistic forecasts speak of about a hundred meteors per hour or even a little more. However, the number that each observer will actually see depends very much on local conditions, including cloudiness, haze, air pollution, and especially light pollution. Therefore, the viewing experience depends very much on location, weather conditions, and also to a certain extent on luck."
What area of the sky should you look at, and to what extent do light pollution and distance from the city affect the chance of seeing the Perseids?
"The Perseids are so named because they appear to emanate from the constellation Perseus, which is visible to us in a northeast to north direction and gradually rises above the horizon starting around 22:00 PM. Looking north increases the chance of spotting the Perseids, but you can also simply look up and scan a wide area of the sky. The meteors seen near the projection point will usually be relatively short, while farther away you can see longer paths."
"The darker the environment and the weaker the light pollution, the more meteors you can see. Even those who can't go out into the heart of the desert can look for a relatively dark area outside the city, as far away as possible from direct light. It's also important to maintain your night vision: it can take up to 45 minutes for your eyes to fully adapt to the darkness, and exposure to light — including your phone screen — impairs adaptation and makes it harder to identify meteors."
"If you're already going out into a dark area, it's worth taking advantage of the opportunity for general astronomical observation. You can see many objects even without a telescope, and use field binoculars or apps like Stellarium to identify stars and constellations. It's advisable to activate dark mode or a red display on your phone. To view the Perseids themselves, you don't need binoculars or a telescope; on the contrary, their limited field of view reduces the chance of seeing a meteor."
Can amateur meteor observations and counting contribute to research, and if so, how and where should they be reported?
"There are organizations that collect information from the public about meteor showers, including the British Astronomical Society. For a proper report, you must fill out a tracking form that can be downloaded from the society's website. It is recommended to prepare in advance with a printed form and a red flashlight, in order to record the observations without damaging your night vision."
"Other bodies, such as the American Meteor Society, focus mainly on reports of more unusual events, such as bolides — particularly large and bright meteors that create a fireball. I am not aware of any Israeli body that regularly collects data from the public on meteor showers, but bodies such as the Israeli Astronomical Society hold guided observations for the general public, especially during periods of prominent meteors such as the Perseids."
More on the subject on the science website
- A total but brief solar eclipse in Europe on August 12, 2026
- New meteor shower reveals asteroid disintegrating near the sun
- The fireball that lit up the southern sky at the peak of the Perseid shower
- Meteor showers like the Perseids are just the tip of the iceberg
- A short guide to the summer sky
Questions and Answers
When will the Perseid shower peak?
The Perseid shower will peak on the night of August 12-13, 2026. In Israel, it is recommended to watch from late evening until the beginning of morning twilight.
Do you need a telescope to see the Perseids?
No. Telescopes and binoculars reduce the field of view. It is recommended to look with your eyes alone at as large an area of the sky as possible.
What is the difference between a meteoroid, a meteor, and a meteorite?
The particle in space is called a meteoroid; the streak of light in the atmosphere is a meteor; and a remnant that reaches the ground is called a meteorite.
Is the Perseid shower dangerous?
No. The meteor particles are small and fragile and decay in the atmosphere at high altitude.
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