Catch the skies as they light up with the Perseids Meteor Shower on August 12th.
Just when you thought a starlit sky couldn’t get any more beautiful, there’s a meteor shower called Perseids due to appear on Saturday August 12th. Earth is passing through debris from the previous Comet Swift-Turtle, which promises to deliver a truly breathtaking display of shooting stars in the night sky.
You can catch this unearthly display late on Saturday the 12th and it carries on until the early hours of Sunday the 13th. According to the Dubai Astronomy Group the meteor shower may produce 100 meteors per hour, all visible if you are in a dark enough spot to see them.
What’s more, this shower is scheduled just before a new moon, meaning that the sky will be at its darkest, meaning perfect viewing conditions.
Where’s the Best Place to Watch?
Find the darkest possible location, and for this we recommend the Al Awir desert. You don’t need any fancy telescope or binocular equipment, because the best way to see them all is to take in as much of the night sky as possible. We suggest taking your car and some sleeping bags, a bunch of friends, and staying up late to catch this breathtaking starry phenomenon.
Alternatively the Dubai Astronomy Group will be hosting a special event on August 12th in the Al Awir desert. Starting at 10pm, it will include observations of Jupiter, Saturn and other deep sky objects using telescopes. Guests will also be able to experience astrophotography sessions, sky mapping, of course observing the meteors and much more.
To join this group from 10pm until 3am admission for adults is AED 300 and AED 250 for children under 13, check out althurayaastronomycenter.ae for more information.
