Comets and asteroids leave a tail of smaller particles in space. Several times of the year the earth traveling in her orbit passes through these awaiting star shows.
This year (August 12-13 2010,) there will be a NO (August 10) moon to compete with the meteor showers. The weekend to plan out is August 13/14/15
Sunset about 7pm (and getting daytime getting shorter)
I suggest you go to non populated lakes in and around the Sacramento
Alternatively, there are many granite peaks that are void of trees that are perfect theaters for the more land based people.
I would welcome the opportunity to point you in the correct direction. (did you see my first post?)
Bonus: watch for satellites about an hour after sunset. Your part of earth is in shadow. However, the satellites are flying in high orbit and their panels often reflect directly down to you!
Perseids
ReplyDeletehttp://stardate.org/nightsky/meteors/
ReplyDeleteThe next meteor shower is the Perseids on the night of August 12. The Moon is just a couple of days past new at the shower's peak,(August 10) so there will be NO moonlight to interfere with the meteors.... The shower should reach its peak in the hours after midnight, with a maximum of a few dozen meteors visible per hour.
The best place to see these are at a granite summit tops. The midnite hike or paddle will give you plenty of time for your pupils to adjust.
Also free app Star Walk on Iphone or Google Sky Map on android.
The ultimate best place to see these are at lakes (unobstructed viewing) such as Wright's Lake, Ice House, Union Valley, Oroville, Fallen Leaf, Echo, Cherry, Sonoma, etc etc etc...
bring a thermos of hot cocoa or vietnamese noodle soup... enjoy!