Spectacular Gigantic Meteor Shower Coming to Montana

Spectacular Gigantic Meteor Shower Coming to Montana

If you live within your city limits, you are probably familiar with the term of "light pollution".  So many lights from everywhere making it difficult to see the night sky.

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Living in Montana, we don't experience it quite as much, which will be beneficial for this weekend as a major up in the heavens event prepares to rain down upon Earth.

This Coming Weekend Will Be the Time to be Outside in Montana

Each year in August, Earth travels through an ancient comet's debris trail bringing us the annual Perseid Meteor Shower.  This year, according to NASA, could be an even more spectacular display that usual.

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Most years we only graze the debris field of the Swift-Tuttle Comet, but occasionally we are brought into more of the debris due to Jupiter's gravity pull on the trail.

Forecasters are predicting a Perseid outburst this year with double normal rates on the night of Aug. 11-12,” said Bill Cooke with NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office in Huntsville, Alabama. “Under perfect conditions, rates could soar to 200 meteors per hour.

The phenomenon is known as an "outburst meteor shower", the last one happening in 2009 with Perseid.

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How To Watch the Perseid Meteor Show This Weekend in Montana

In tips from NASA, the best ways to catch the shower "is to go outside between midnight and dawn on the morning of Aug. 12. Allow about 45 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark. Lie on your back and look straight up. Increased activity may also be seen on Aug. 12-13."

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If you aren't able to find a spot that isn't light polluted, you can watch the meteor shower online from August 11-13, 2024, starting at 8pm MDT at the UServe website here.