Page 103 - BBC Sky at Night Beginners Guide to Astronomy - 2017 UK

WHAT TO SEE

THE PERSEIDS
One of the best meteor showers
of the year, the Perseids, takes
place in August. Its high ZHR of
80 meteors per hour, together
with the warm summer nights,
make it ideal for observing.
The peak of the shower occurs
around 12 August, but as Perseid
activity lasts from mid July until
mid August, you have plenty of
opportunities to see them.

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-
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-
-
0ERSEIDS METEOR DIARY
!.$2/-%$!
QUADRANTIDS
.'# Peak around 3 January
-
with a maximum of
42)!.'5,5- 120 meteors per hour.
#APELLA
The shower is active in
!2)%3 Look northeast below early January.
Cassiopeia to see the
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Perseids in all their glory
- ETA AQUARIDS
- Peak around 6 May
,//+).'4/7!2$3./24(%!34 with a maximum of
60 meteors per hour.
produced during this process is displayed as a the return of the annual Perseids meteor The shower is active
glowing trail of ionised gas. In other words, when shower, with a zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) in early May.
you see a shooting star, it’s not the falling object of 80. The ZHR is the number of meteors
that’s engulfed in fl ames, it’s the energetic gases seen an hour under perfect conditions, with ORIONIDS
around the vaporising particle that you can see the shower radiant (the point from which the Peak around 21 October
with a maximum of 26
as a white-hot trail. meteors emanate) directly overhead. If you
meteors per hour. The
On average, you can see around fi ve shooting want to become an expert meteor spotter, shower is active in
stars per hour on any night, but August sees this is a great time to get started. mid to late October.
LEONIDS
METEORITE OR METEOROID? Peak around 18
A Meteorite is the
A Meteor, commonly surviving part of a November with a
maximum of 15
A Meteoroid is a
A Meteoroid is a known as a shooting meteoroid that was (could be higher)
large enough not
small object orbiting
small object orbiting star, is a bright streak of to get completely meteors per hour. The
out in space, with
out in space, with light seen in the daytime burnt up before shower is active in
the potential to
the potential to or night sky, caused by it hit the ground. mid to late November.
meet Earth. a meteoroid entering
meet Earth.
Meteoroids the atmosphere. GEMINIDS
Meteoroids
are the debris Peak on 13 December
from comets with a maximum of
or asteroids. 110 meteors per hour.
The shower is active
in mid to late December.
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