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Best viewing for Earth’s oldest meteor shower in years

HARTFORD–The Perseid meteor shower peaks early Thursday morning and you can watch it right here in Connecticut. All you have to do is look up!! This is a ...
Perseids

HARTFORD–The Perseid meteor shower peaks early Thursday morning and you can watch it right here in Connecticut. All you have to do is look up!!

This is a great year for the annual display because the peak of the meteor shower coincides with an almost new moon, meaning less light pollution in the sky and more darkness to help find “shooting stars.”

Best viewing for Earth’s oldest meteor shower in years

The Perseid meteor shower is really just debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle, which has been orbiting the sun for centuries. In fact, the Perseids are the oldest known meteor shower to Earth!

As debris collides with the earth’s atmosphere at 140,000 mph, the debris heats up to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat causes the long-lived streaks that are visible in the sky. On a good night, you can see one meteor a minute.

Time: After midnight to before sunrise Thursday. The peak will be around 3 a.m.
Where: Away from city lights. Although meteors will appear to originate from the constellation Perseus in the northeastern sky, you can see them just by looking up–no telescope needed!
How many: 50-100 meteors an hour

Send photos of the meteor shower to pictures@foxct.com!

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