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| Stargazers set sights on meteors | Stargazers set sights on meteors |
| (about 10 hours later) | |
| Shooting stars have been gracing the night sky in one of nature's most spectacular light shows. | |
| The Perseid meteor shower, which happens every year, has been most apparent in the north-eastern part of the sky near the Perseus constellation. | |
| The meteoric marvel coincided with a new Moon, providing stargazers with dark skies and also the best viewing conditions for years. | |
| And those in cloud-free areas had the best view of all. | |
| "If we're lucky, on Sunday night and Monday morning we might see as many as 100 meteors an hour," predicted Dr Robert Massey from the UK's Royal Astronomical Society. | |
| "But the usual caveat applies: you still need good weather." | "But the usual caveat applies: you still need good weather." |
| The best viewing conditions will have been where the sky was clearest and darkest. However, meteors should be visible, to a lesser degree, in cities despite light pollution and smog. | |
| "You will see them almost wherever you are, so it's worth a look," Dr Massey added. | "You will see them almost wherever you are, so it's worth a look," Dr Massey added. |
| Both hemispheres were due to receive good views but the prime locations were said to be Western Europe and North America. | |
| Watchers were set to get the best of the display from about 2200 BST (2100 GMT) on Sunday 12 August, peaking just before sunrise on Monday 13 August. | |
| Tiny particles | Tiny particles |
| The annual Perseid showers are caused by small bits of debris, many no bigger than a grain of sand, that enter the Earth's atmosphere when our orbit passes through the tail of the Swift-Tuttle comet. | The annual Perseid showers are caused by small bits of debris, many no bigger than a grain of sand, that enter the Earth's atmosphere when our orbit passes through the tail of the Swift-Tuttle comet. |
| These particles travel at very high speeds, reaching up to 50 kilometres per second (32 miles per second), and burn up in the atmosphere. | These particles travel at very high speeds, reaching up to 50 kilometres per second (32 miles per second), and burn up in the atmosphere. |
| This causes the air around them to get extremely hot, which produces the streak of light that we see. | This causes the air around them to get extremely hot, which produces the streak of light that we see. |
| "It's a spectacular phenomenon that everyone can enjoy. The great thing is that you don't need any equipment apart from your eyes," Dr Massey said. | "It's a spectacular phenomenon that everyone can enjoy. The great thing is that you don't need any equipment apart from your eyes," Dr Massey said. |
| "It's a laid back form of astronomy. You can go outside, look up at the sky and enjoy it. And that's really what it's about." | "It's a laid back form of astronomy. You can go outside, look up at the sky and enjoy it. And that's really what it's about." |
| As an added bonus, watchers should have been able to see Mars, which was set to be in view as a bright red dot in the eastern sky after midnight. | |
| Are you planning to see the spectacle? Send us your experiences using the form below. | Are you planning to see the spectacle? Send us your experiences using the form below. |
| Send your pictures to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or if you have a large file you can click here to upload. Click here to see terms and conditions | Send your pictures to yourpics@bbc.co.uk, text them to 61124 or if you have a large file you can click here to upload. Click here to see terms and conditions |
| At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. | At no time should you endanger yourself or others, take any unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. |