Keep an eye on the sky for Perseid (From The Westmorland Gazette)
When news happens, text KENEWS and your photos and videos to 80360. Or contact us by email or phone.
Keep an eye on the sky for Perseid
12:46pm Friday 3rd August 2012 in Opinion
By Stuart Atkinson
WE CAN see one or two shooting stars - or meteors - on any clear night: they just appear out of nowhere and can't be predicted. But at certain times of the year we see a meteor shower, and many more shooting stars than usual zip across the sky.
In mid-August every year the Perseid meteor shower lights up the sky, and although we're still a week away from its August 12 peak, keep an eye on the sky after midnight on any clear night until then. There are already Perseid meteors flying about.
You'll see more shooting stars if you can go somewhere dark, away from light pollution. Then just look towards the east, and wait. Sooner or later you'll see a shooting star skate across the sky. On the 12th - perhaps one every minute or so.
Stuart Atkinson Eddington Astronomical Society of Kendal
