Oklahoma To Be Treated To Special Perseid Meteor Shower

Conditions should be good for the annual Perseid meteor shower.

Scientists expect it to be even more spectacular this year than most.The Perseids will peak tonight, August 12, 2015.

This year's event should be special because the moon won't brighten the sky. News On 6 meteorologist Steven Nehrenz says skies should be mostly clear Wednesday night with temperatures dipping into the 60s.

Perseids can be see all across the sky as they burn up in the Earth's atmosphere.

Astronomers predict the precise peak to come at 3 a.m. August 13 Oklahoma time. BUT, it's important to note that the show should be dramatic for several hours before and after that time. That means the best time to watch in Oklahoma will be from about midnight to dawn. 

If you can't stay up that late, though, you should still be able to see at least some shooting stars beginning right after nightfall.

According to SpaceWeather.com, more than 100 Perseid meteors per hour will be visible Wednesday night.

Astronomers named them the Perseids because they appear to come from a point in the constellation Perseus. The fireballs they cause are actually pieces of debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle.

Visit SpaceWeather.com.

The Earth is also in the midst of the weaker but long-lasting South Delta Aquariid and Alpha Capricornid meteor showers.

NASA has set up what it calls the All-sky Fireball Network. It's a network of cameras set up by the NASA Meteoroid Environment Office to observe meteors brighter than the planet Venus, which are called fireballs.  

Visit NASA's All-sky Fireball Network page.

NASA will use the collected data to help spacecraft designers.