# Can we see meteors tonight?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 13, 2009, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262 "2009-08-13T06:20:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![King\_Bobo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@King\_Bobo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/King_Bobo)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262/1 "2009-08-13T06:20:22Z")

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Is this the night to see a lot of shooting stars?

Where is the bet place to see them?

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**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262/2 "2009-08-13T06:54:29Z")

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Yesterday was the peak. But I went outside, looked up, and saw a nice one tonight. Stay tuned all through the week, though the “best” night has passed. Look north-east, after 11 p.m.

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262/3 "2009-08-13T18:27:02Z")

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Actually you can look in any direction. If you take the path of the meteors and trace them back, most of them radiate out from a point to the northeast, but they can be pretty much anywhere in the sky. The ideal way to watch is in a lounge chair that can recline all the way back (or that failing, a comfortable blanket or the like on the ground) so you’re lying back and looking straight up.

As for location, you can see some even from the middle of a city, but the best results will be somewhere clear and far from city lights.

Oh, and bring blankets, jackets, or the like to stay warm. It gets a lot colder than you’d think, lying flat underneath a clear sky.

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**Author:** ![WarmNPrickly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d78d45/32.png) [@WarmNPrickly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WarmNPrickly)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262/4 "2009-08-13T19:54:28Z")

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> [@Chronos](#):
>
> It gets a lot colder than you’d think, lying flat underneath a clear sky.

Maybe in Montana. In southern Missouri, it could be sixty five, but I’m still sweating from the humidity.

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**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\
**Post date:** [August 13, 2009, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-we-see-meteors-tonight/506262/5 "2009-08-13T22:07:04Z")

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We saw them last night. Even in the city they were very bright and visible.