The ‘best meteor show of the year’ will be above WA this weekend. Here’s how to watch
The “best meteor shower of the year” will be visible from Washington this weekend, and the moon’s waning crescent phase should provide better viewing opportunities than last year, according to NASA.
The Perseid meteor shower typically peaks in mid-August and is considered one of the most dependable showers each year, along with the December Geminids, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Stargazers across the U.S. can expect to see one meteor every couple of minutes during the Perseid shower, NASA reports, so long as they’re in a place without too much light pollution. Between 50 to 75 meteors can be spotted during the height of the shower’s activity.
Some local areas have meteor shower-watching parties, such as the Seattle Astronomical Society, which will be hosting a watch party at Snoqualmie Point Park at 9 p.m. Saturday.
Here’s what to know about seeing the Perseid meteor shower in Washington this year.
When will the meteor shower peak in Washington?
This year’s Perseids are expected to peak very late Saturday night, early Sunday morning, according to the American Meteor Society, though it may be easier to see them in the dark Saturday evening.
The Perseids shower got its name from its “radiant” (the place the meteors appear to come from), the constellation Perseus, according to Space.com. Perseid meteors result from particles from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which is slowly orbiting the sun at a rate of 133 years per complete orbit.
“When the Earth passes through that part of (the comet’s) orbit, all of those pieces of the comet crash into the atmosphere and burn up as they pass through the air at supersonic velocities,” Brian Jackson, an associate professor in Boise State University’s Physics Department, previously told McClatchy News.
The meteors in this shower are known for their fireballs.
“They ablate in the atmosphere, they’re basically heated up and vaporized, and that makes up this really brilliant light show,” Jackson said.
How to view the meteors in Washington
Mostly clear skies are predicted throughout Washington this weekend.
As of Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service in Pendleton forecasts mostly clear weather with no chance for storms in eastern Washington, including the Tri-Cities area. The low temperature on Saturday night into Sunday morning, the best time to view the meteor shower, will be 65 degrees.
Western Washington also will enjoy mostly clear skies. The Weather Service in Seattle forecasts partly cloudy skies and a low of 58 degrees on Saturday night in Bellingham, while southern Puget Sound around Tacoma and Olympia will be mostly clear with a low of 59 degrees.
For Washingtonians, the constellation Perseus appears along the northeast horizon shortly after the sun sets and rises high into the night sky.
That means you’ll find it hard to see any meteors around downtown areas or places with high light pollution.
Where can you watch the meteors in Washington?
The website Light Pollution Map shows where exactly you can escape light pollution, but here are some other locations throughout Washington that are great for spotting meteors:
Sunrise Picnic Area, Mount Rainier — Sunrise Visitor Center on Sunrise Park Road, Ashford
Snoqualmie Point Park — 37580 Winery Road, Snoqualmie
Titlow Beach Park — 8616 6th Ave., Tacoma
Horse Heaven Hills Recreation Area — 19205 N McBee Rd, Benton City
Red Mountain at — West Richland
The next chance to watch a significant meteor shower will be the Orionids from Sept. 26 to Nov. 22, with the peak coming Oct. 20-21.
This story was originally published August 10, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
