# Anyone planning on watching the Perseids this Sunday? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 7, 2007, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710 "2007-08-07T04:20:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Faruiza](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@Faruiza](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faruiza)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/21 "2007-08-08T02:10:44Z")
[QUOTE=Savannah] That sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime thing! Wow–you are so lucky. I have seen a couple that were so bright, lasted so “long” (relatively speaking), and filled enough of the sky, that they were a bit scary. I keep looking up for another experience like that. It hooks ya, that starry sky… [/QUOTE] Certainly does. Celestial beauty is mesmerizing. And then, WHAMMO. Tunguska Crater. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![pudytat72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@pudytat72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pudytat72)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/22 "2007-08-08T02:31:07Z")
[QUOTE=dnooman] I saw an awesome [Leonids](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonids) shower a few years ago (1999) when I was traveling through a very, very low light pollution area in WV. We pulled over (having prior knowledge that the storm was happening) and a few people stopped to see if we were having car problems. We just said “Look” and pointed at the sky. Soon we had a few people that witnessed a fairly rare astronomical event. Good times. [/QUOTE] That shower was the first time I really saw a “shooting star”. I was determined to see it and it was cloudy in Dallas, so I started driving east until I got out of the cloud cover-I ended up in a state park just east of Jackson, Mississippi!! Got there about 9 pm, pitched my tent, and slept until 1 am. Then got out and started walking to a place I had seen that afforded a good view. Saw my first meteorite while I was walking! Set up my lawn chair, climbed into my sleeping bag and was amazed the rest of the night! I saw several meteroites that left vapor trails in the sky. That night will be hard to beat! ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/23 "2007-08-08T02:52:27Z")
I’m bummed about this. This coming weekend i’m in New York City, which is possibly the worst place in the world to try and view a meteor shower. Next weekend (August 18 and 19) i’ll be in rural Vermont, which would be absolutely perfect. Hopefully we’ll still be going through the tail end of the showers, and i might get to see some. The last time i saw the Perseids was in the mid-1990s, when a friend and i were camping in Strathcona Provincial Park on Vancouver Island. We lay in our sleeping bags on the beach by Buttle Lake and watched the meteors all night. It was amazing. ---
**Author:** ![GrizzRich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@GrizzRich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrizzRich)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/24 "2007-08-08T04:18:57Z")
I’ll be visiting family in the mountains of Virginia; so I’m hoping for a good show. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/25 "2007-08-08T11:32:54Z")
Sunday night we’ll be watching an outdoor performance of the **12th Night** in Winchester, so I may see some Persids as it gets dark. I may set an alarm to see the peak at 2am. However, it will probably cloud over and nothing will be visible at all ☹ I saw a pretty spectacular meteor show a few years back in NZ - lots of bright flashy lights in the sky. Loved it. Si ---
**Author:** ![Beadalin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@Beadalin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beadalin)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/26 "2007-08-08T14:37:32Z")
My husband and I are going to be in a little tiny cabin on the shore of Lake Superior, way the hell up north where there’s no light pollution to speak of. We get there tomorrow and leave Tuesday, so I expect hot meteor action throughout our stay. Can’t wait! ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/27 "2007-08-08T15:50:30Z")
[QUOTE=pudytat72] That shower was the first time I really saw a “shooting star”. [/QUOTE] Seriously? On any given clear night, sit and look up for 10 minutes and chances are you’ll see one or two. They’re coming in all the time, and even more so these days with all the junk up there. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/28 "2007-08-08T15:55:47Z")
If the skies are clear, we will be sampling wine and watching from my deck. Thanks for the heads-up, **dnooman**. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/29 "2007-08-08T18:18:53Z")
I’ll be working until midnight on the 12th, so probably no go. ☹ Take lots of pictures, people! ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/30 "2007-08-08T19:01:21Z")
[QUOTE=GrizzRich] I’ll be visiting family in the mountains of Virginia; so I’m hoping for a good show. [/QUOTE] So will I. I’ll be back in the D.C. area Sunday night, but I’ll be out there both Friday and Saturday nights, and if the Wikipedia article is correct, those nights should be pretty good too. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/41988e/32.png) [@El\_Cid\_Viscoso](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Cid_Viscoso)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/31 "2007-08-08T19:06:28Z")
I’ve already seen a few. Some of them have been blue or green. I think this year will be amazing. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2007, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/32 "2007-08-08T19:07:28Z")
[QUOTE=Kythereia] I’ll be working until midnight on the 12th, so probably no go. ☹ [/QUOTE] If you can manage it, just stay up after you get off work, and watch the show! The NASA site says things should be best in the early a.m. Also, it’s not just a one-night show. The Perseids actually started back in mid-July, but Wikipedia says the period of peak activity starts tonight, and runs through the 14th. ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2007, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/33 "2007-08-13T03:50:42Z")
I managed to see half a dozen or so, and I didn’t even get far enough away from city light pollution for my tastes. My Dad and I brought his scope and we saw four moons of Jupiter, so that was cool. My Dad’s wife saw the first meteor she had ever seen tonight, that was pretty cool too. I can’t imagine there will be too many pics of them, they tend to only last a fraction of a second from what I’ve seen. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2007, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710/34 "2007-08-13T06:37:57Z")
I saw about 4, at 3am BST. I only watched for about 15 minutes though. I wasn’t going to wake my missus for that. Si [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-planning-on-watching-the-perseids-this-sunday/414710.md?page=1)