It's not the best of summer weather over the UK at the moment, so what are the chances of seeing 'shooting stars' this week.
It’s time again for the Perseid Meteor shower. The ‘super’Moon isn’t going to help viewing, which is best when a bright moon is absent but still worth a look tonight. The Perseids appear late July/early August each year with the peak this year on 12th/13th and you could have hoped for some pleasant viewing outside on a summer’s evening. However, this week is bringing more blustery cool weather, min. temperatures in Scotland down to 9 or 10C, elsewhere around 12 or 13C overnight.
The meteors tend to come from a particular part of the sky, the radiant. This being quite high in the NE of the evening sky, in the UK in the constellation of Perseus. If you can spot the ‘W’ of the Cassiopeia, just below that. It helps to be away from light pollution with darker skies, although the moon may bring its own natural spoiler.
So too much moonlight, it’s cool and windy, what about the all important cloud. There is some hope, but it could be a frustrating time. Southern Britain looks most like to see clearer skies before midnight tonight, maybe into E.Scotland, and SW Britain clearer tomorrow night (Weds 13th)
Elsewhere, there will be broken cloud with showers and even with over 100 meteors per hour, it may not be the year for a great show.
actual Cloud over UK Tues
