2023-08-12 20:02:12
Western University, London, has developed a meteor monitoring website with NASA and is unveiling it just in time for the Perseids, an annual astronomical phenomenon expected between Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Due to clear skies and the waning moon, Canadian skies are an ideal location to view this meteor shower. The skies of the Northern Hemisphere will be filled with light reflected from particles of dust and rock, the remnants of the formation of the solar system that burn up as they pass through the atmosphere.
We hope that this site will be an essential tool for meteor lovers who would like to observe them. We want to make sure that the public is informed and aware of all these interesting phenomena.
Saturday evening, almost 60 meteors per hour could be visible. It is also possible, very early on Sunday, that many meteor flares will occur at between 10 and 20 second intervals.
The website’s dial is effective because it predicts the phenomena that occur, explains postdoctoral associate researcher Denis Vida.
When the dial is in the blue zone, the activity is very low, and nothing interesting is happening, while when the dial is in the red or green zone, you can go out and see meteors in the sky, explains- he.
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The site makes it possible to measure the frequency of appearance of meteors over the next 24 hours.
Photo: Screenshot
A more visible phenomenon in less populated regions
The tool, which is used for the coordination of NASA spacewalks, is accessible from any region of the world and at any time.
Meteors in space move at a speed of about 20 km per hour, the same speed as a bullet from a gun. If an astronaut goes on a spacewalk without an accurate forecast, a meteor could penetrate his spacesuit and cause an oxygen leak.
According to Vida, the data collected by the group has been shared with NASA for several years. Today, this research group at Western University is releasing this information to the general public.
With information from CBC News.
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