The Perseid meteor shower will hit its spectacular peak over Wyoming’s night skies on Tuesday, a chance to witness the annual summer astronomical phenomenon. And Wyoming is a great place to watch the shooting stars and fireballs
The shower originates from the 16-mile-wide Comet Swift–Tuttle, which orbits the sun every 133 years. While the Perseid shower is normally visible in some capacity between mid-July and September, it will reach peak intensity in the early morning hours of Aug. 12 and 13.
Cowboy Camping
Max Gilbraith, planetarium coordinator at the University of Wyoming, said the spectacle is a must-see because of itspotential for bursts of fireballs that can create “once-in-a-lifetime” sights.
“Sometimes you can get a rapid-fire amount of meteors, you can get fireballs that break up and create fiery skies,” Gilbraith told Cowboy State Daily. “They can even have a sonic boom.”
“It has the most meteors per hour during its peak,” he added. “We could get up to 100 meteors per hour.”
Those interested in viewing the shower should look to the night sky after midnight in a dark location away from city light pollution, he said.
Gilbraith’s preferred method to view stars is by “cowboy camping” in an open area with a sleeping bag, pillow and low fire to stay warm.
Gilbraith will host a public viewing session at Sinks Canyon State Park near Lander. The site was the first Wyoming location to be designated a Dark Sky Park, meaning it is minimally impacted by light pollution.
“You’ll definitely see more meteors past midnight, that’s because that’s actually the leading edge of the Earth that spins around and we’re orbiting the sun,” Gilbraith said. “It’s best to think of meteor showers as we sweep up the dust of old comets and that’s when we see meteors.”
‘It Never Disappoints’
Cowboy State Daily meteorologist Don Day said the Perseid shower is among his favorite meteorological events of the year.
“In my opinion it’s the best meteor shower of the year, because it happens during the warm season,” Day said. “We might have some better meteor showers during the course of the year, but this is one where you can go outside at night and not freeze.
“It never disappoints, at least it never does for me.”
Those hoping to catch the Perseid shower should expect some cloud cover and a nearly full moon, both of which can potentially obscure one’s view of the shower, Day said.
He suggests looking south and east in a location where the moon is not overhead.
Jupiter and Venus are also expected to conjoin in the night sky during the shower’s peak, creating a double star visible with the naked eye. Smartphone cameras, Day added, can capture both events using a long exposure photo mode.
