September Perseid meteor shower maximum

September Perseid meteor shower

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The swarm ofshooting Stars of the Perseids of September takes its name from the fact that, as with the Perseids observable in August, the meteors seem to come from the constellation of Perseus. However, this swarm was formerly called the “delta-Aurigids” and was grouped with the swarm of the same name, visible from September 18 to October 11 in the constellation of the coachman.

The astronomers long thought it was a secondary peak that had drifted into the constellation Perseus. However, thanks to long observations, they discovered that it was a separate swarm, having no connection with the delta-Aurigids. To avoid confusing them with the famous August Perseids, it was decided to baptize them “September Perseids”. These meteors are very fast, with a speed approximately 64 kilometers per second.

To observe the September Perseids, you need to look for the constellation Perseus above the northeast horizon, around 8:00 p.m. UT. Five meteors are forecast per hour.

The constellation Perseus is a circumpolar constellation, that is, in Europe it never sets. Watch out for sunrise Moon which might bother you.

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