PITTSBURGH (Newsradio 1020 KDKA) - Outer space is putting on quite the show over the next few weeks with the annual Perseid meteor shower.
Local science communicator Ralph Crewe tells KDKA Radio the earth is currently “plowing through a debris field left over by the comet Swift Tuttle.”
“As the earth approaches the debris, our gravity pulls it into our atmosphere at speeds no slower than 25,000 mph, often much faster,” added Crewe.
The small bits of dust and ice, typical the size of a grain of sand or pebble, “hit the earth with such tremendous energy that they ionize the air, violently heating it and glowing a range of colors,” said Crewe.
Crewe adds he has seen red, white and green ones so far this year and that they “seem to radiate out of Perseus, in the northeastern sky.”
While the Perseid will last through August 24, Crewe says the best time will be in the early hours Wednesday morning, with clearer skies forecasted.
The Perseid is known as the best meteor shower of the year with up to 100 being seen an hours.
According to Crewe, the best way to watch it is in “a lawn chair and a hot chocolate or beer in a big open field.”
If you want to try to photograph some of the meteors, Crewe says you to have the right equipment and your camera phone won’t cut it.
“You need a tripod, a good camera with manual setting, and an intervalometer, as well as fancy software,” said Crewe.
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