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It’s an exciting time to be a sky-watcher this week, as no less than three meteor showers are occurring. If you’re in an area with clear skies and you’re far from city lights, head out after dark for the chance to view one of these beautiful events.
Meteor showers occur regularly, as Earth passes through clouds of debris in its orbit. As it passes through these debris clouds, small pieces of the debris burn up in the planet’s atmosphere and are visible as the streaks of light we call meteor showers.
This week sees the peak of two major meteor showers — the Alpha Capricornids and the Southern Delta Aquarids — which are created by the debris left behind from two different comets. It’s pure coincidence that they happen to be so close together. A helpful factor for sky-watchers in this case is that both showers originate from the southern portion of the sky, so you can look out for both at the same time.
If you do see meteors and wonder where they came from, you can identify which of the two showers is responsible by looking for the features. According to Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society, who spoke to The New York Times, meteors from the Alpha Capricornids are brighter and travel more slowly, lasting for a few seconds each. While meteors from the Southern Delta Aquarids will be fainter and travel faster, being visible only briefly.
These two showers are peaking, but there’s also a third meteor shower, which is just beginning. The Perseids, one of the most famous yearly meteor showers, is set to peak in early August, but you might be able to catch a glimpse of early arrivals if you look to the north.
The advice for watching any meteor shower is the same. You’ll need to get as far away as you can from sources of bright light, and you’ll need to give your eyes time to adjust to the darkness before you can hope to see meteors. Avoid looking at light sources like your phone, and settle in somewhere comfortable where you can look up at the sky. Many meteor watchers like to use deck chairs as comfortable and portable options for getting a good view.
You’ll need to be somewhere without cloud cover, but if you’re lucky enough to have a clear night (and for the moon to be not too bright, like it will be tonight) then you may be able to catch a view of the shower after dark.
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