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The Perseid Meteor Shower Begins Thursday: When To See It At Its Best
The Perseid Meteor Shower Begins Thursday: When To See It At Its Best

Forbes

time5 hours ago

  • Science
  • Forbes

The Perseid Meteor Shower Begins Thursday: When To See It At Its Best

A perseid 'falling star' on a clear sky in august The Perseid meteor shower in 2025 will begin in perfect conditions — but it won't last. The much loved annual summer display of 'shooting stars' in the Northern Hemisphere will commence on Thursday, July 17, but with the peak night in August set to be marred by strong moonlight, there are two nights to see it at its best. Here's everything you need to know about this year's Perseid meteor shower. Where And When To Look The best time to see the Perseid meteor shower is typically on its peak night, which this year occurs overnight on Aug. 12-13, when up to 100 meteors per hour can be visible under perfect conditions. However, that's just a few days after a full moon, which will bleach the night sky and make all but the brightest Perseids visible. The best nights to see the Perseids this year will, therefore, be away from the peak night. On July 17, the last quarter moon will rise around midnight and later each night after that for the next week. That creates a nice viewing window from July 17-30, during which you should see a few Perseids. With the Delta Aquariid and Alpha Capricornid meteors showers peaking together overnight on July 29-30, that's probably the best night for shooting stars this summer. Around Aug. 15, when the full moon has waned, is another good time to see some stragglers from the Perseids. What You'll See During this early phase of the Perseids, rates will be modest — perhaps 5–15 meteors per hour. But what you miss in quantity, you'll make up for in quality: skies will be darker now than they will be during the August peak when the full moon will overpower all but the brightest shooting stars. Luckily, the Perseids are known for their fast, bright meteors, many with long trails. Look vaguely northeast for the radiant of the Perseids, which lies in the constellation Perseus. However, meteors can appear anywhere in the sky, so give yourself a wide, unobstructed view. Observing Tips For the best chance of seeing Perseids, find a dark location away from city lights. Clear weather is key, so check local forecasts and scout a location with minimal horizon obstructions. Meteor showers are best observed with the naked eye, with a telescope or binoculars a poor choice. A lawn chair can help, or lie on your back on a blanket. Avoid looking at phones, which will instantly kill your night vision, and use red lights instead. The wise stargazer brings warm clothes, bug spray and snacks — and takes breaks from staring at the sky every 30 minutes or so. What's Next In The Night Sky The next major meteor shower after the Perseids is the Orionids. Active from Oct. 2 to Nov. 12, that meteor shower will peak overnight on Oct. 22-23. It coincides with October's new moon, so conditions should be perfect — clear skies allowing. However, at 10-20 shooting stars per hour (away from light pollution), it's not as prolific as the Perseids. For exact timings, use a sunrise and sunset calculator for where you are, Stellarium Web for a sky chart and Night Sky Tonight: Visible Planets at Your Location for positions and rise/set times for planets. Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.

In Photos: 12-Mile-Wide Alien Comet Captured Over Hawaii
In Photos: 12-Mile-Wide Alien Comet Captured Over Hawaii

Forbes

time6 hours ago

  • Science
  • Forbes

In Photos: 12-Mile-Wide Alien Comet Captured Over Hawaii

Comet 3I/ATLAS is captured in this image by the Gemini North telescope. The incredible sensitivity ... More of Gemini North's Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS-N) reveals the comet's compact coma — a cloud of gas and dust surrounding its icy nucleus. An object believed to be both from another star system and the oldest comet ever observed has been imaged by a massive telescope on a volcano in Hawaii. The Gemini North telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii, captured a detailed image of the ancient comet — called both 3I/ATLAS and C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) — as astronomers rush to study a celestial body formed in a distant star system. What The New Images Of 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) Show Its observations suggest that the object has a tail and a nucleus, confirming that it's a comet. Gemini North's Multi-Object Spectrograph also reveals the comet's compact coma — a cloud of gas and dust surrounding its icy nucleus. 'The sensitivity and scheduling agility of the International Gemini Observatory has provided critical early characterization of this interstellar wanderer,' said Martin Still, NSF program director for the International Gemini Observatory. 'We look forward to a bounty of new data and insights as this object warms itself on sunlight before continuing its cold, dark journey between the stars.' Comet 3I/ATLAS streaks across a dense star field in this image captured by the Gemini North ... More telescope's Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph (GMOS-N). The left panel captures the comet's colorful trail as it moves through the Solar System. The image was composed of exposures taken through three filters, shown here as red, green, and blue. See a close-up image of the comet here. Why 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) Is So Special What makes this object stand out from every other object astronomers can see in the solar system is its trajectory, size, and speed. 3I/ATLAS's eccentric trajectory suggests that it's from outside the solar system, while preliminary data indicate that it's around 12 miles (20 kilometers) in diameter. That's much larger than the two previous interstellar objects, 'Oumuamua in 2017 and comet 2I/Borisov in 2019. It is moving at an exceptionally high speed, traveling at almost 25,000 kilometers (15,500 miles) per hour. How Big Is 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS)? The third interstellar object ever to be found after 'Oumuamua in 2017 and a comet called 2I/Borisov in 2019, 3I/ATLAS could be three billion years older than the solar system — the oldest comet ever seen. By comparison, ʻOumuamua measured roughly 200 meters, and Borisov less than a kilometer. It may be the oldest comet ever observed, at approximately three billion years older than the solar system (which is 4.6 billion years old) and possibly as old as 14 billion years. However, its exact age remains unknown. This animation shows the observations of comet 3I/ATLAS when it was discovered on July 1, 2025. The ... More NASA-funded ATLAS survey telescope in Chile first reported that the comet originated from interstellar space. Where Is 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS)? The third known interstellar object to visit our solar system, the object was first detected on July 1 by the El Sauce Observatory in Chile, part of the global Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System. It's currently within Jupiter's orbit at a distance of about 465 million kilometers (290 million miles) from Earth and 600 million kilometers (370 million miles) from the sun. What Will Happen To 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS)? It will come closest to the sun on Oct. 30 at a distance of 210 million kilometers (130 million miles) and 270 million kilometers (170 million miles) from Earth on Dec. 19. However, at no point will it threaten Earth or be visible to the naked eye. The new Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile — which unveiled its first images last month and has a unique view of the night sky supported by the world's largest camera — is expected to find about 50 more interstellar objects like 3I/ATLAS / C/2025 N1 (ATLAS). Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.

NASA discovers 'super Earth' planet emitting mysterious signal
NASA discovers 'super Earth' planet emitting mysterious signal

Emirates 24/7

time7 hours ago

  • Science
  • Emirates 24/7

NASA discovers 'super Earth' planet emitting mysterious signal

NASA has discovered a mysterious 'super-Earth' planet that appears to flash a repeated signal from 154 light-years away. The planet, named TOI-1846 b, is almost twice the size of Earth and four times as massive. It orbits a small, cool red dwarf star every four days and causes a strange, repeated dip in the star's light, a signal that first caught scientists' attention when NASA's TESS space telescope observed the dimming pattern in March of each year. Now confirmed by a team of scientists using both space and ground-based telescopes, TOI-1846 b falls into the so-called 'radius gap,' a rare category between small, rocky planets like Earth and larger, gas-rich planets like Neptune. Despite an estimated surface temperature of 600°F, researchers say the planet may still hold water. It's believed to have a solid rocky core, a dense ice layer, and potentially even a shallow ocean or thin atmosphere. The host star is a "red dwarf," approximately 40 percent smaller in size and mass than the Sun. NASA scientists hope that the James Webb Space Telescope will soon target TOI-1846 b to study its atmosphere using infrared light. Under favourable conditions, Webb will be able to detect signs of water vapour, methane, carbon dioxide, or other gases. Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.

What Australian sky watchers can expect as the Perseids return for 2025
What Australian sky watchers can expect as the Perseids return for 2025

News.com.au

time8 hours ago

  • Science
  • News.com.au

What Australian sky watchers can expect as the Perseids return for 2025

One of the most famous and active celestial events of the year will begin streaking across the Australian night sky from Thursday, but sky watchers may find this year's display underwhelming with a near-full moon expected to outshine the fainter meteors. Dubbed 'the best meteor shower of the year' by experts, the Perseids are one of the busiest showers with about 50 to 100 meteors seen per hour, according to NASA. The event produces fast, bright streaks and occasional fireballs, larger bursts of light caused by bigger chunks of space debris burning up in Earth's atmosphere. The meteors come from debris left behind by comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle, which last passed through the inner solar system in 1992 and is almost twice the size of the asteroid believed to have wiped the dinosaurs from Earth. As Earth moves through this trail of dust and rock each year, the particles slam into our atmosphere at high speeds, creating the familiar flashes of light in the night sky. NASA says the Perseids are best viewed in the pre-dawn hours, when the sky is darkest and the shower's radiant point, the constellation Perseus, is higher above the horizon, but they can sometimes be seen from about 10pm. But there's a catch for Aussie viewers: The best views are in the Northern Hemisphere. Only those in the far north of Australia may catch a glimpse of the brighter meteors, and even then, the brightness of the moon will reduce visibility significantly. Those in southern Australia will likely miss out altogether. The shower runs from July 17 to August 23, with peak activity expected about August 12.

Uranus Leaks More Heat Than We Thought
Uranus Leaks More Heat Than We Thought

Gizmodo

time19 hours ago

  • Science
  • Gizmodo

Uranus Leaks More Heat Than We Thought

When Voyager 2 flew past Uranus in 1986, the spacecraft detected a surprisingly low level of internal heat from the planet. Since then, scientists believed Uranus to be the odd one out in our solar system's family of giant planets—the others being Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune—who all tend to emit more heat than they absorb from sunlight. Now, a new study suggests that scientists may have had the wrong idea about Voyager 2's data: Uranus does have an internal heat source similar to its planetary siblings. For the study, published Monday in Geophysical Research Letters, researchers analyzed decades of archival data available on the ice giant, finding that Uranus emits 12.5% more internal heat than it absorbs from the Sun. That's still considerably less heat than the other three giant planets, which emit more than 100% of the solar energy they receive. Nevertheless, the study demonstrates that Uranus doesn't stray too far from scientists' general understanding of how giant planets form and evolve. Something Strange Happened During Voyager 2's Flyby of Uranus in 1986 To reach this conclusion, the researchers analyzed data on Uranus's global energy balance across one full orbit of the Sun, which takes 84 years. The team took this observational data and combined it with computational models, finding big seasonal swings driven by the planet's wild changes in sunlight exposure. The new findings are consistent with an earlier paper about Uranus's energy balance, published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society in May. That said, neither study offers a clear answer as to why Uranus's internal heat is much lower than the other gas and ice giants. Uranus may have had a 'different interior structure or evolutionary history compared to the other giant planets,' the researchers noted in a statement. The study also found that Uranus's energy levels change according to its 20-year-long seasons. These fluctuations, along with the planet's heat budget, 'provide observational constraints that can be used to develop theories of planetary formation for giant planets,' the study states. A Long-Held Assumption About Uranus Just Got Upended Thus, the paper both answers and raises questions about Uranus, which the researchers cite as a good reason for future NASA missions to investigate the icy planet further. 'By uncovering how Uranus stores and loses heat, we gain valuable insights into the fundamental processes that shape planetary atmospheres, weather systems, and climate systems,' said Liming Li, study co-author and physicist at the University of Houston, in the release. 'These findings help broaden our perspective on Earth's atmospheric system and the challenges of climate change.'

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