An expert has offered advice to Gedling Eye readers on how to best catch a glimpse of the Perseid meteor shower over the next few days.
Phil Randall, from the Mansfield and Sutton Astronomical Society, said people in Gedling borough could be in for a real treat this year.
He said: “The Perseid Meteor Shower is a regular shower which happens on the same nights each year as the earth travels through an area of dust left behind by Comet Swift Tuttle on its regular journey around the sun.
“The meteors themselves are only generally small grains millimetres across and we see them as they burn up in the upper atmosphere.
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“They are called the Perseids as them seem to emanate from the constellation of Perseus in the north eastern sky.”
And Mr Randall thinks there was a good chance people could catch a glimpse from their back garden.
He said: “The official ‘peak’ of the shower is the evening of the 12/13 August but you should be able to see them on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
“They could be in any part of the sky, but you are best sitting in a deck chair and looking directly up but facing a north-east direction.
“Be away from lights if you can and for best results, be looking after moonset and before dawn, and instead of the normal 80 per hour, it is predicted there could be 150/200 per hour this year.”
The society are opening up their observatory this Saturday (13) to the general public. People who turn up between 11am-5pm will be given the opportunity to have a close-up look at the sun using their specialised equipment.
Anyone interested should email msatreasurer@gmail.com for more details.
Are you planning to look out for the Perseid meteor shower? If so send us your pictures news@gedlingeye.co.uk
