Sturgeon Moon peaks in 2025; skywatchers may find their view diminished by the bright glow of the moon clashing with the shooting stars, but the Perseids are still one of the most beautiful meteor showers every year.
On August 12 and 13, when the Perseids meteor shower peaks, the Sturgeon Moon, which is in its last gibbous phase, will illuminate the night sky. Even though it’s a stunning sight in and of itself, skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere may witness much fewer meteors than normal during this yearly summer extravaganza due to the increased brightness.
“On a night, the average person could catch between 40 and 50 Perseids every hour,” explained Bill Cooke, lead at NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office. However, you’ll likely only see 10 to 20 meteors per hour, or perhaps fewer, because the bright Sturgeon Moon will obscure the fainter ones.
The Sturgeon Moon and Perseids are in the same sky, so even though this year isn’t ideal for meteor counting, it should still be an amazing display.
However, that does not imply that there aren’t methods to enhance your viewing experience.
To get the best look on this Sturgeon Moon, August full moon
Although the Perseids meteor shower will be visible all night, the optimum time to see the most meteors is from midnight to dawn, particularly from 2 to 3 a.m. local time.
Bill Cooke of NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office joked, “You won’t see Perseids around suppertime.” It will be necessary for you to leave later.
Choose a secure, remote area with a broad, unobstructed view of the sky for the best experience. You should be able to observe Perseids streaking by if you can see a lot of stars above you. However, Cooke gives one more piece of advice because this year’s Sturgeon Moon is so bright: “Look anywhere but at the Moon.”
Why does the world experience the Perseids?
Although Earth experiences the Perseid meteor shower every year, the comet that causes the meteors hasn’t passed close to Earth in decades. The comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle, which last passed through our solar system in 1992, is the source of the meteors.
The debris path left by the comet is traversed by the Earth as it circles the Sun. When these cosmic debris hit our atmosphere, they break apart and produce streaks of color and fire in the sky.
The meteors appear to radiate outward from the Perseus constellation, despite being a part of the debris trail of a comet. Perseids is the name given to the meteor shower because of this.