How to Watch the Perseids, the ‘Best Meteor Shower of the Year’

The year’s most highly anticipated meteor shower is finally here: the Perseids, in all their dazzling, prolific glory.

The spectacle—which NASA says is considered “the best meteor shower of the year”—begins in mid-July and ends in early September. This year, the Perseids are expected to peak on the night of August 11 and into the early morning hours of August 12, according to the American Meteor Society.

“You’ll start seeing meteors from the shower around 11 p.m. local time, and the rates will increase until dawn,” Bill Cooke, head of NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office, says in a statement. “If you miss the night of the 11th, you will also be able to see quite a few on the night of the 12th between those times.”

Why are the Perseids so beloved? They’re bright, colorful, fast and abundant. Under peak viewing conditions—a cloudless, dark sky with no moon and very little light pollution—some 90 meteors per hour may be visible, according to EarthSky’s Bruce McClure and Deborah Byrd. As a summer shower, the Perseids also occur while the weather is relatively warm and comfortable.

Two other ongoing meteor showers also overlap with the Perseids, the Southern Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids, meaning you’ll have a very good chance of spotting a shooting star (or, more likely, several) if you stay up late or wake up early.

Want to catch a glimpse of the Perseids yourself? Here’s what to know about this year’s meteor shower.

“The Perseids is the best annual meteor shower for the casual stargazer,” said Bill Cooke, who leads NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office at #NASAMarshall.

Learn how you can view the Perseids on the night of Aug. 11 and the pre-dawn hours of Aug. 12 >> https://t.co/ZiqLyAPVbA pic.twitter.com/8Fq678yCsz

— NASA Marshall (@NASA_Marshall) August 2, 2024

Where the Perseids come from

As with other meteor showers, the Perseids occur when Earth travels through the trail of rocks and dust left behind by a comet. In this case, that “comet of origin” is 109P/Swift-Tuttle, a massive celestial body with a nucleus that measures 16 miles across. It’s nearly twice the size of the asteroid that scientists think slammed into Earth 66 million years ago and wiped out the dinosaurs.

In addition to being large, 109P/Swift-Tuttle also stands out because it’s been known to scientists for more than a century. Two American astronomers named Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle independently discovered it in July 1862. Three years later, Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli connected the dots and realized 109P/Swift-Tuttle is responsible for the Perseids that light up the night sky every August.

The comet’s journey around the sun is a long one, taking 133 years to complete. The last time 109P/Swift-Tuttle’s orbit took it through the inner solar system was in 1992. Amateur Japanese astronomer Tsuruhiko Kiuchi was the first to spot it that year, using a powerful pair of binoculars, and other astronomers later confirmed the sighting. The comet won’t return until 2125.

Scientists like to keep an eye on 109P/Swift-Tuttle, in part because it’s “one of the largest near-Earth objects,” says Teddy Kareta, a planetary scientist at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, to the Arizona Republic’s Tiffany Acosta. Comets and asteroids in this group are not expected to collide with Earth, but they do get close enough that “we ought to keep track of them just in case,” he adds.

The Perseids travel quickly, entering the atmosphere at speeds of up to 37 miles per second, or 133,200 miles per hour. For comparison, the Leonids are the world’s fastest annual meteor shower with speeds of nearly 160,000 miles per hour. During the Perseid shower, around 50 to 100 meteors may be visible hourly, according to NASA. The Perseids are so prolific that, in the summer of 1972, they helped inspire singer-songwriter John Denver to write “Rocky Mountain High.” The lyric “I’ve seen it raining fire in the sky” was inspired by a camping trip he took in Colorado during the Perseids.

From Earth’s surface, the Perseids appear to originate from the constellation Perseus, which is known as the meteor shower’s “radiant.” Perseus, named after a hero from Greek mythology, is the 24th largest constellation in the sky, according to Space.com’s Stefanie Waldek.

Perseus can be tricky to spot on its own. Fortunately, it’s situated right next to another, easier to identify constellation: Cassiopeia. Look for Cassiopeia’s signature zig-zag shape, which looks like the letter M or W.

“If it’s an M, Perseus will be below and to the right of the letter,” Waldek writes. “If it’s a W, it will be below and to the left. Perseus’ most distinguishing feature is a curve of stars called the Segment of Perseus, which can be spotted by following the line from Cassiopeia’s center star to either the bottom left star of the W or the top right star of the M, again depending on orientation.”

But when watching the Perseid shower, don’t just stare at the radiant—experts recommend keeping a wide gaze across the sky.

ScienceCasts: Bright Perseid Photographed from Space

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Tips for viewing the Perseids

The Perseids are fast, bright and plentiful—which makes them easier to see than some other meteor showers. They also occur during the warm month of August, which makes for a more comfortable viewing experience compared to mid-winter displays like the Leonids and Geminids.

They’re most visible from the Northern Hemisphere in the pre-dawn hours, though you may be able to spot some shortly after it gets dark in your area. This year, the Perseids will reach their peak when the moon is about half full. The semi-illuminated moon will dip below the horizon around 1 a.m. local time, according to the American Meteor Society, which further supports heading outside in the early morning hours, when the sky will be at its darkest.

As you trace shooting stars across the night sky, be sure to keep an eye out for meteors that seem unusually bright, colorful or long-lasting. These “fireballs”—which result from larger bits of space debris entering Earth’s atmosphere—are common during the Perseids.

You can watch the Perseids from your home or neighborhood. But for an optimal viewing experience, consider heading somewhere with little to no light pollution—a rural area, a national or state park, a hiking trail or a wilderness preserve, for example. Certified “dark sky” areas are also ideal. More specifically, try to seek out places with wide, unobstructed views of the sky, like a field or a country road, according to EarthSky.

Keep in mind that you may end up having to wait in line if you travel to a popular viewing site. For example, Joshua Tree National Park in California is bracing for an onslaught of Perseid-watchers and warns of “delays of up to several hours while entering the park,” per a recent statement.    

As you prepare to watch the Perseids, pack items like a blanket and pillow for lying on the ground, a camp chair for reclining, a flashlight or headlamp with a red light setting, a camera and binoculars for stargazing. Remember to avoid looking at any bright lights for at least 15 minutes to give your eyes a chance to acclimate to the dark.

Above all else? Be patient.

“Shower meteors always come in spurts separated by spells of inactivity that can last up to a few minutes,” writes Sky & Telescope’s Bob King. “On the surface these empty times might seem boring, but the temporary lack of action only heightens our anticipation for the next arrival.”

Sarah Kuta | READ MORE

Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. She covers history, science, travel, food and beverage, sustainability, economics and other topics.