APOD
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Milky Way and Exploding Meteor
Explanation: Next weekend the Perseid Meteor Shower reaches its maximum. Grains of icy rock will streak across the sky as they evaporate during entry into Earth's atmosphere . These grains were shed from Comet Swift-Tuttle . The Perseids result from the annual crossing of the Earth through Comet Swift-Tuttle 's orbit, and are typically the most active meteor shower of the year. Although it is hard to predict the level of activity in any meteor shower , in a clear dark sky an observer might see a meteor a minute. This year's Perseids peak nearly a week after full Moon , and so some faint meteors will be lost to the lunar skyglow . Meteor showers in general are best be seen from a relaxing position , away from lights. Featured here is a meteor caught exploding during the 2015 Perseids above Austria next to the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy .
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| Date | August 6, 2017 |
|---|---|
| Credit | Image Credit & Copyright: Andr van der Hoeven |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP) |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |



