Why are the Perseids always so good?
“If you ever took introductory physics, you might remember that there’s a formula for kinetic energy: KE = ½ M v^2, where M is the mass of the particle in motion and v is the particle’s velocity. The mass of these dust grains might be tiny, but the velocity is tremendous! All meteors move at tens of thousands of miles per hour, but the Perseid meteors move an average of 133,000 miles per hour, giving them significantly more kinetic energy than many of the other showers.”
When the debris path of a comet or asteroid crosses Earth’s orbit, a meteor shower is the result. Some showers are duds, with the meteors being infrequent, inconsistent, short-lived and dim. Hardly worth mentioning. On the other hand, meteor showers can be spectacular, with frequent events, consistent displays year-to-year, lasting many consecutive nights and with bright, luminous fireballs. The Perseids, peaking tonight, are all four of these things, and we have its unique history and origins to thank for it!
wooow
