Suggested Searches

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.

See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.

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 .

Follow APOD on: Facebook , Google Plus , Instagram , or Twitter

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.