Dates of all summer meteor showers (and the rest of 2024)

Meteor showers are always impressive. And with summer vacations, we even want to enjoy them even more. Here’s why It’s good to know what dates and places they will be visible.. Although first it is advisable to determine what exactly we are talking about. Because they are not really stars.

As the National Geographic Institute (IGN) explains, comets, when describing their orbits around the Sun, They emit a trail of gases, dust and debris (rocky materials) into space.Thus, each comet forms a ring in which numerous fragments of the comet are distributed.

When the Earth, rotating around the Sun, collides with one of these rings, some rock fragments (meteoroids) are captured by its gravitational field and They fall at high speed through the atmosphere, forming a meteor shower.. Friction with atmospheric gases burns and vaporizes the meteors, which appear bright for a split second, forming what we commonly call shooting stars. Therefore, it is not a star, but a particle of hot dust.

The altitude at which a meteor becomes bright depends on the speed at which it enters the atmosphere, but is usually around 100 kilometers. However, The high brightness and high transverse velocity of some meteors produce a spectacular effect.giving the observer the illusion that they are very close. Moreover, meteor showers appear to have a single center of origin – a point from which all the shooting stars emerge. This point is called the “radiant” and its location is used to name the meteor shower.

There are always two meteor showers in the summer, according to IGN.: Delta Aquarids and Perseids. But we’ll have five more before the end of 2024. This is the full table with dates and periods of maximum activity.

The viewing location to enjoy these meteor showers can be anywhere, as long as the sky is dark. It is preferable to observe from a place where there are few obstructions to the view (for example, buildings, trees or mountains) and not to use optical devices that limit the field of view. It is advisable to direct the gaze towards the darkest areas, in the direction opposite to the position of the Moon, if the observation is carried out in its presence. In short, it is most comfortable to lie down and wait for the eyes to get used to the darkness.

Delta Aquarids

As we have seen, the Delta Aquarids are the first of the summer, as they visit us every year between July 12 and August 23, peaking around July 30. From IGN they describe it in detail The Aquarid Delta meteors are best viewed from the Southern Hemisphere. because their radiant is higher in the sky, but they are also visible in the northern hemisphere, although with slightly less intensity of activity. For observers at our latitudes, the radiant of the Delta Aquarids is above the horizon from midnight until dawn.

IGN thinks we’ll be able to enjoy them especially well this year: “2024 will be a good year to see this rain as the maximum will occur three days after the last quarter.which will not significantly worsen vision. “Maximum activity will occur on July 31, with a fairly extended peak, so the night from the 30th to the 31st, and the following night will be favorable for observation.”

As for its origin, It is believed that the Delta Aquarid meteors may originate from 96P Machholz.a short-period comet that orbits the Sun approximately every five years. And their radiant is in a stellar delta called Skat, in the constellation Aquarius.

Perseids

The Perseid showers occur every year around August 12. They are Also known as the Tears of San Lorenzo. due to the proximity of the meteor shower’s maximum to August 10, the feast day of the Spanish martyr of the same name. And they are visible from all over the northern hemisphere in midsummer.

The speed of these meteors can exceed 50 kilometers per second, and their activity rate can reach 200 meteors per hour. Although their peak activity occurs on the nights of August 11-13, the Perseids usually begin to be observed around July 17 and end around August 24. Its high activity, combined with favorable atmospheric conditions for observation during the boreal summer makes the Perseids “the most popular meteor shower and the most easily observed of those occurring during the year.”They say from IGN.

For observers at our latitudes, the Perseid radiant remains above the horizon all night. In 2024, the Perseids will peak on August 12 between 3 and 6 p.m. official Peninsular Time, which also coincides with the first quarter of the Moon, so it would not be the best year to see it. In any case, it is a heavy rainfall, and the activity peaks usually beyond the maximum, so there could be a large number of meteors seen on the nights around this date, especially after the Moon has set.

Every year at the beginning of August, our planet is crossed by the orbit of comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. which has a period of 133 years and last passed close to the Sun in 1992. And that’s where the Perseids come from. Although they seem to originate from the constellation Perseus (hence the name), they can be seen anywhere in the sky. However, the number of meteors observed per hour varies greatly. In a very dark place and at a high radiant above the horizon, it can exceed a hundred. But it’s hard to comprehend. specific forecasts.