‘Take some time to look up': Perseid meteor shower could be visible tonight
Gazers of the Perseid meteor shower could see about 60 meteors an hour darting across Tuesday's night sky – weather and light pollution permitting.
Met Éireann forecasts clear spells for most, though cloudier conditions are expected to build in the south.
In urban areas, where light pollution can hinder sight of the night sky, those hoping to catch a glimpse can still expect a decent show, said astronomer Danielle Wilcox from Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork.
READ MORE
'It gives some of the brightest meteors, so you can be in the city and see some of those bright ones,' she said.
The Perseid meteors are caused by dust particles shed by the comet, Swift-Tuttle. The comet, which takes 133 years to orbit the sun, was last seen in Irish skies in 1992.
At this time of year, Earth moves through this debris cloud, making one of the most celebrated astronomical events and arguably the most predictable.
Particles from the debris cloud subsequently burn up on entering Earth's atmosphere and create flashes of light.
While the shower is active for several weeks, it peaks on the night of August 12th.
'It's such a special time of the year,' Ms Wilcox said. With a caveat to ease heightened expectations, she said the public would not see 'thousands of stars falling from the sky', but could see one or two meteors a minute.
The Perseids take their name from the constellation of Perseus, from where they appear to spread in all directions, and towards which Ms Wilcox advised looking on Tuesday night.
A meteor streaks across the sky over West Virginia during the annual Perseid meteor shower in 2021. Photograph: Bill Ingalls/Nasa
There are about a dozen meteor showers each year, but 'tonight in particular is the night to go out'.
'It's a really good meteor shower in particular because it gives us a lot of meteors per hour compared to other meteor showers,' she said.
With about 60 meteors an hour, 'you're almost guaranteed, if you sit out and look up for a few minutes, to see a meteor,' she said.
'That's what's so exciting about it, especially for people who have never seen 'shooting stars', this is your chance to get out there and see that,' she said.
The number per hour can rise to 100 for those under 'really, really dark skies'.
She said August's full moon, known as a Sturgeon Moon, might hinder sight of the less bright meteors, but it was 'luckily' becoming less bright and was rising later.
This provided an optimal window, between sunset and moonrise, for stargazers to look north and catch a glimpse of the shower.
'Take some time to look up,' she said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
18 hours ago
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on Ireland's AI future: the clock is ticking
Given the scale of the claims being made for artificial intelligence, it is striking how slow the Oireachtas has been to give the subject sustained attention. AI is routinely described as having the potential to transform society, disrupt the global political order and even alter what it means to be human. Yet it was only this year that the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence began its work, holding its first public session in June. This week its chair, Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, set out his thinking on what must happen next. Byrne believes Ireland could position itself as 'the AI island' but warns that the opportunity will be lost without swift and decisive action. He says he would be disappointed if both a new AI office and an AI observatory are not operational by next year. The office will be tasked with implementing the EU's AI Act, while the observatory will assess the technology's effects, from employment disruption to identifying future skills needs. In Byrne's view, those who embrace AI will displace those who do not, whether they are doctors, architects or lawyers. He welcomes the Government's plan for an AI summit during Ireland's EU presidency in 2026 and argues for clear ethical frameworks in education, where students are already using AI tools. He also points to the technology's current uses in Ireland, from automating recycling processes to analysing tax data. Such calls for urgency are sensible and overdue. But preparing the State for the changes ahead will require far more than offices, observatories and summits. The debate is complicated by the sweeping and often speculative claims surrounding AI, from the elimination of entire job categories to science-fiction visions of superintelligent machines destroying the human race. This discourse is unfolding against the backdrop of a global investment surge, with leading AI companies commanding extraordinary valuations and data centres proliferating at breakneck speed. History suggests such frenzies rarely end without turbulence. READ MORE Byrne's proposals are shaped by the EU's AI Act, which will impose a detailed regulatory roadmap over the coming years. That approach contrasts sharply with the let it rip stance favoured by Donald Trump's administration in the US, and with the UK's less prescriptive, more innovation-oriented strategy. Which philosophy will prove more effective is an open question but the divergence will have real consequences for competitiveness. If Ireland is serious about becoming 'the AI island', it must reckon with the reality that others are moving faster and with considerable resources. Ambition is necessary, but so too is a clear-eyed appraisal of the scale of the challenge and the pace of change. Without that, the island will be an observer, not a leader, in the age of AI.
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
‘Take some time to look up': Perseid meteor shower could be visible tonight
One of the most eagerly awaited astronomical events of the year – which promises one or two meteors or 'shooting stars' a minute – is set to dominate Irish skies on Tuesday night. Gazers of the Perseid meteor shower could see about 60 meteors an hour darting across Tuesday's night sky – weather and light pollution permitting. Met Éireann forecasts clear spells for most, though cloudier conditions are expected to build in the south. In urban areas, where light pollution can hinder sight of the night sky, those hoping to catch a glimpse can still expect a decent show, said astronomer Danielle Wilcox from Blackrock Castle Observatory, Cork. READ MORE 'It gives some of the brightest meteors, so you can be in the city and see some of those bright ones,' she said. The Perseid meteors are caused by dust particles shed by the comet, Swift-Tuttle. The comet, which takes 133 years to orbit the sun, was last seen in Irish skies in 1992. At this time of year, Earth moves through this debris cloud, making one of the most celebrated astronomical events and arguably the most predictable. Particles from the debris cloud subsequently burn up on entering Earth's atmosphere and create flashes of light. While the shower is active for several weeks, it peaks on the night of August 12th. 'It's such a special time of the year,' Ms Wilcox said. With a caveat to ease heightened expectations, she said the public would not see 'thousands of stars falling from the sky', but could see one or two meteors a minute. The Perseids take their name from the constellation of Perseus, from where they appear to spread in all directions, and towards which Ms Wilcox advised looking on Tuesday night. A meteor streaks across the sky over West Virginia during the annual Perseid meteor shower in 2021. Photograph: Bill Ingalls/Nasa There are about a dozen meteor showers each year, but 'tonight in particular is the night to go out'. 'It's a really good meteor shower in particular because it gives us a lot of meteors per hour compared to other meteor showers,' she said. With about 60 meteors an hour, 'you're almost guaranteed, if you sit out and look up for a few minutes, to see a meteor,' she said. 'That's what's so exciting about it, especially for people who have never seen 'shooting stars', this is your chance to get out there and see that,' she said. The number per hour can rise to 100 for those under 'really, really dark skies'. She said August's full moon, known as a Sturgeon Moon, might hinder sight of the less bright meteors, but it was 'luckily' becoming less bright and was rising later. This provided an optimal window, between sunset and moonrise, for stargazers to look north and catch a glimpse of the shower. 'Take some time to look up,' she said.
Extra.ie
a day ago
- Extra.ie
Stargazers assemble: Perseid meteor shower set for best view
Stargazers should get their telescopes ready as the Perseid meteor shower is on course to reach its peak tonight and tomorrow. The celestial fireworks will be on full display over Ireland and August 12 is the best time to see them. The event is associated with the dusty debris left by Comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun once every 133 years. The meteor shower will be on full display on August 12. Pic: Samuel de Roman/Anadolu via Getty Images The meteors are mostly no bigger than a grain of sand, but they burn up as they hit the Earth's atmosphere at 36 miles per second to produce a shooting stream of light in the sky. They are called Perseids because they seem to dart out of the constellation Perseus. Peak temperatures can reach anywhere from 1,648C to 5,537C as they hit the atmosphere. Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Resident Astronomer at Blackrock Observatory in Cork Danielle Wilcox said the best time to view the spectacle is after sunset and before the moon rise as it will be the darkest time. She added that there are around 12 meteor showers every year but Perseid has the most and brightest meteors. Stargazers will want to get their telescopes out. Pic: Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images Wilcox said: 'These are very predictable, they happen every year at the same time. 'What is happening is we have comets that come from the outer solar system and they come in from the sun and they come near the sun and start to break up. 'So you have all this debris that comes from the comet, so you will have ice, rock and different things that are coming from the comet. 'And it leaves this cloud and it is in the same spot in space, so as we are going around the sun, Earth slams into this cloud and passes through all this debris in August every year.' Wilcox reassured anyone who will miss the meteor shower tonight or tomorrow, not to worry as it continues for the next week. Perseus is now visible in the north-eastern sky but for the best chance of seeing the meteors, experts say it is worth turning towards the east-south-east, looking towards Saturn, or more to the north, looking towards the constellation of Ursa Major.
