Are You Ready To Be Dazzled By Nature's Spectacular Show?

While the Perseid showers provide a dazzling meteor show every August, this year's event is expected to be spectacular, thanks to a new moon, which will provide the perfect viewing conditions.

Though the meteor showers can be seen starting mid-July, they are expected to be optimal from August, 10th to the wee hours of Friday, August 13th. Scientists estimate that during this period, earthlings will be treated to, as many as, 60 meteors dashing across the skies at any given time.

Perseid showers, which get their name because they seem to appear from the direction where the constellation Perseid is located, are just the debris that the comet Swift-Tuttle left behind, as it travelled through the area on its 132-135 year orbit.

The showers are normally seen around this time of the year when Earth cruises through the region on its annual orbit around the sun. And, while they can be seen from most parts of the world, they are most prominent in the Northern Hemisphere because of the path of the Swift-Tuttle's orbit.

So, if you live in the Northern Hemisphere, be sure to look up at the skies sometime this week. The best place to view the show is away from the city lights and in the pre-dawn hours when the side of the earth closest to the sun scoops up more meteors as it revolves in its own orbit - And, as you are watch these 'shooting' stars', be sure to make a wish (or two)!

sources: wikipedia.org, telegraph.co.uk,