For those who love astronomy, it could be worth losing a little sleep to stay up late Monday night.
The annual Perseid meteor shower runs from July 14 to Sept. 1, but Gary Boyle said the peak period will be Monday night and into Tuesday morning.
“It’s a great time of year, it’s always in August, people are on vacation at the cottage so if you can really partake in this one,” said Boyle, who is also known as The Backyard Astronomer.
The name originates from the term Perseidai (Greek: Περσείδαι), referring to the children of Perseus in Greek mythology.
The meteor shower originates when Earth moves through tiny, sand-sized fragments of Comet Swift-Tuttle, which vaporize harmlessly in the atmosphere at speeds of approximately 72 kilometres per second.
Conditions are expected to be perfect for witnessing around 90 meteors each hour, with a chance to spot a few bright fireballs.
“The sand-sized particles pretty well vapourize in the atmosphere north, east, south and west. There will even be some larger fireballs. These are pretty well gravel-sized bits, so really, the bigger the meteoroid coming in, the bigger the flash,” said Boyle.
Boyle mentioned that if you’re heading out to escape the bright city lights, you’ll be treated to a view of the Milky Way galaxy. You’ll also be able to spot the planets Saturn, Mars and Jupiter.
While a telescope can enhance the experience, he noted any astronomy app on your smartphone can help locate these celestial bodies.
