Make a wish! It is meteoric shower time

Today and tomorrow is the most active period of the Perseids – a meteoric shower. Although it can be observed throughout the month. There is even a saying "stars fall in August."

Perseids meteoric shower (its radiant is in the constellation of Perseus) takes place every year, when Earth passes through the orbit of the Swift-Tuttle comet – the candidate of physical and mathematical sciences, scientific director of the Space Research Laboratory of UzhNU Vitaly Yepishev says. Clastic rocks that flew out of its nucleus, falling to the Earth’s atmosphere, spark in it like stars.

According to Wikipedia, the Perseids are formed by remnants of the cometary tail. Comets, approaching the Sun, get heated, scattering in interplanetary space particles of ice and dust, which under the action of the solar wind are carried a little away from the comet itself, remaining near its orbit. The tail of a comet is composed of tiny particles of ice, dust and rocks that were thrown into interplanetary space from the comet’s nucleus. When the Earth on its way around the Sun approaches these particles, they enter the atmosphere at the speed of over 150 thousand km / h (the average speed of Perseids is 210 thousand km / h). They then make straight continuous, and sometimes dotted lines, or light up in the form of a string, and sometimes even in the form of one or more fireballs. Most flashes (known as "shooting stars") are caused by meteoroids with the size of a grain of sand.

 Now, a few scientists investigate these phenomena in Ukraine, – Mr. Yepishev says, because there is no appropriate equipment.    

By the way, the Swift-Tuttle comet was discovered in 1862, when it was passing closest to the Earth. The last time it approached our planet was in December 1992. This close proximity of the comet caused increased activity of Perseids. In August 1993, observers in Central Europe recorded 200 to 500 meteors per hour. The next time the Swift – Tuttle comet will pass through the middle of the solar system in 2126, and it promises to be a grand spectacle. In the meantime, you can watch meteoric shower yourself. Mr. Yepishev recommends to do it in the mountains, in the second half of the night.