https://wwmt.com/news/local/shooting-star-alert-perseid-meteor-shower-predicted-to-peak-this-week
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Summer's most popular meteor shower was expected to peak early this week.
The Perseid meteor shower is one of the most popular meteor showers of the year, because it reaches a peak on warm August nights as seen from the northern hemisphere. The Perseids are technically active from July 17 to August 24, but reach a strong maximum on August 12 or 13, depending on the year.
According to the International Meteor Organization, this year the Perseid meteor shower will peak Tuesday night, Aug. 11, 2020.
Information form the IMO states rates seen from rural locations range from 50-75 shower members per hour at maximum. This assumes very ideal viewing conditions with virtually no light pollution from city lights or the moon and a total lack of cloud cover.
During this year's peak, the approximately half-illuminated moon will rise a little before 1 a.m., meaning the window of dark skies will be slim. The best time to look will be between about 11 p.m. until 12:30 a.m. Tuesday night, before moonlight starts to spoil the show.
The Perseids are caused by tiny particles of dust and debris released from comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle during its numerous returns to the inner solar system. Most recently, the comet made a pass through our inner solar system in 1992. It won't be back until 2125.
They are called Perseids because the radiant, the area of the sky where the meteors seem to originate, is located near the constellation of Perseus when at maximum activity. That being said, you don't necessarily want to look for them near the constellation itself. Your best bet is to just get a wide view of the sky, and look up with a wide gaze.
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory ambassador, Tony Rice, also recommended looking low in the northern sky in the evening hours for a few that may skim the upper atmosphere. While there probably won't be many of these particular meteors, they tend to produce longer and long-lasting trails.
Rice also said a more realistic number to expect may be around 9 to 10 meteors per hour from a reasonably dark location during the 11 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. window of opportunity.
Fortunately, here in West Michigan, clouds shouldn't be too big of an issue come Tuesday night. If anything, the forecast looked partly cloudy. Overcast skies would spoil the show completely.
As mentioned, the Perseid meteor shower technically lasts weeks, so keep an eye to the sky in the coming days. We can still expect fairly active nights in the days leading up to and after peak.
Here are some tips if you plan on viewing the shower:
You can also watch indoors from the comfort of your laptop screen. NASA offers a livestreamthat will be available from 9 p.m. EST on August 11 until sunrise the next day.