Perseids meteor shower to take place on Aug 13, visible from Singapore
The meteor shower can be viewed in Singapore under the naked eye.
One of the world’s brightest meteor showers – Perseids, is set to occur at 4am on Aug 13 and will be visible from Singapore under the naked eye.
The celestial phenomenon makes an annual appearance usually from mid-July to late August and can be sighted under fair weather conditions.
Its name is derived from Perseus – a Greek mythological hero and a constellation which is the 24th largest in the night sky. The shower will pass in the same direction where the constellation is located.
Given that there is no light pollution or cloud cover, open areas with unblocked surroundings are ideal locations to catch a glimpse of Perseids. This includes nature parks, beaches, and reservoirs across Singapore.
Viewers should avoid gazing directly at the Perseus constellation and look at dark areas around it instead as the streaks of the meteors can be spotted more easily.
Meteors are made of bits of rocks and ice ejected from comets or asteroids. The Perseids meteor shower occurs when Earth passes through a trail of space debris left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle, a large comet discovered in 1862.
According to the Science Centre Observatory, the next major shower that can be viewed from Singapore is the Geminids. It is named after the Gemini constellation and is likely to take place in December.
