science

Australia Perseids 2019: How to watch the meteor shower light up the night in Australia


The annual Perseid shower will light up the night skies with up to 80 meteors an hour next week. The meteor shower is active each year between July 17 and August 24. During this window of activity, individual Perseid meteors can be spotted dashing across the night skies. But between the nights of August 12 and August 13 the shower will explode with intensity, in what is known as the shower’s peak.

When is the Perseid meteor shower in Australia? 

The Perseids are among the most prolific showers of the year if you know when to look out for them. 

This year, the meteor shower peaks between the night of August 12 and the morning hours of August 13. 

The peak marks the moment Earth passes through the littered 133-year-long orbit of Comet Swift-Tuttle.

From Australia’s position in the Southern Hemisphere, however, the peak will be best seen on the night of August 13 to August 14. 

When viewed from Melbourne for instance, the shower will be best seen after midnight local time.  

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Where to look for the Perseids on the night of the peak? 

Meteor showers always appear to emerge from a single point or radiant in the night sky. 

The Perseids radiate from their namesake constellation Perseus. 

Unfortunately, in Southern Hemisphere, it might be tricky to spot the radiant point. 

Stargazers in Melbourne or Adelaide, for instance, will not see the showers radiant as it will be below the horizon. 

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But the good news is locating a shower’s radiant is not required to enjoy the spectacle. 

Once the shooting stars break out into the night sky, they will fire off in all sorts of directions. 

The Royal Astronomical Society in the UK said: “The Perseid meteors seem to come from a single point, the `radiant’, situated in the constellation Perseus, giving the shower its name. 

“This is however just an effect of perspective, as the meteors move parallel to each other, much like drivers see when driving in heavy rain.” 

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So the best tip is to find a wide-open space where you will see the whole night sky at once. 

There is also no need to bring a telescope or binoculars with you – the meteors are too quick to follow with instruments. 

Unfortunately, this year the shower will be slightly hindered by the presence of a Waxing Gibbous Moon.

The meteor shower typically produces up to 80 meteors an hour but with a bright Moon, the numbers can drop drastically. 

Other sources of lights such as city lights or cars can also make it harder to spot the shower. 



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