The skies will be filled tonight with shooting stars and will be one of the most impressive outbursts since 2009. According to reports, This year’s Perseid meteor shower is expected to consist of an unusually high number of shooting stars, according to Bill Cooke from NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office.
Excerpt From RT:
“Forecasters are predicting a Perseid outburst this year with double normal rates on the night of August 11-12. Under perfect conditions, rates could soar to 200 meteors per hour,” he said. The last Perseid outburst occurred seven years ago and the next one is not expected until 2027. The reason for this explosion in fireballs can be attributed to Jupiter. Every Perseid meteor is a tiny piece of the comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun every 133 years. On this occasion Jupiter’s gravity has moved some streams of comet material closer to Earth, setting the stage for a dazzling celestial display.
