Bill Cook from NASA's Meteorite Office: "The moon's glow will eliminate the black-velvet background that is required for viewing pale meteors and will reduce the number of meteors that can be seen sharply."
Every year, amateur astronomers are waiting at summer camps to stay outside on the nights of August 11,12, 13 and XNUMX. These are the days when the peak of the summer's meteor shower arrives - the Perseids, which rarely disappoint those watching it.
This year it will collide with another astronomical event known as a supermoon. During the second week of August, this year's big and bright full moon will appear precisely on the night of the meteors, but it will also be a beautiful sight in itself. The phenomenon of the supermoon occurs when the moon is both close to Milou and at the closest point to the Earth. Since the phenomenon does not occur every month, because there is no synchronization between the moon's orbit around the earth and the orbit of both around the sun, this phenomenon is considered relatively rare.
The Perseid shower originates from Comet Swift-Tuttle. Every 13 years the comet reaches the inner solar system and leaves behind a trail of ice and dust. When the Earth crosses the region of these fragments, the ruptures from the comet's tail hit the atmosphere at a speed of about 200 thousand km/h and disintegrate in a flash of light. These meteors are called Perseids because from our angle of view they appear to come from the constellation Perseus.
In a normal year, when the moon is not full on these dates in August, and the sky is black, over 100 meteors per hour can be observed. However, this year is not a normal year. On August 10th, just when the Perseids are supposed to peak, the moon becomes full. Moreover, it will be full at the exact time it reaches the position in its orbit (the perigee) closest to Earth. The full moon in Phrygia of August 1-10, as mentioned the super moon will be 14% closer and 30% brighter than the other full moons in 2014.
This is of course bad news for Perseid enthusiasts, says Bill Cook of NASA's Meteorite Office. "The moon's glow will remove the velvety-black background required for viewing pale meteors and will sharply reduce the number of meteors that can be seen in the north."
But there is also good news. since 2008, The Perseids produced more fireballs than any other annual meteor showerR. The Geminids are in second place.
The stream of fragments of Comet Swift-Tuttle is wide, and the Perseids could already be seen at the end of July, long before the moon was full, and in addition, Cook says, "The Perseids are rich in bright fireballs like Jupiter and Venus, so they will be visible despite the glare.
Cook and his team will also this year be assisted by a network of meteor cameras scattered across the US, as they have been doing since 2008. So far they have built a database of hundreds of events for analysis. Their data shows that the Perseids are the undisputed fireball champions of all annual meteor showers. "We see more fireballs from Swift-Tuttle than from any other comet." said.
A warm summer night, a full and shining moon and fireballs crossing the sky from time to time - this is the recipe for beauty in itself. have fun Summarized on the NASA website.
In any case, the middle of the month in many cases also means a holiday, and this is because in ancient times there was no extensive outdoor lighting like today, and therefore the ancients preferred to hold the ceremonies on a full moon night. Today is also the night of Tu Bav, the night when the daughters of Israel would go out to the vineyards in white clothes, to look for spouses. In a full moon, perhaps their shortcomings can also be seen....
More of the topic in Hayadan:
- Tonight the moon will be especially big - super moon (22/6/2013)
- NASA Meteorological Office: The Perseids produced more fireballs than any other annual meteor showerר
- Listen to Perseids on FM
- Research for Tu Bab - the love hormone causes us not to see shortcomings in our partner
- Dance of love in Tu Bab
