Showers of Rain and Meteors

     Yesterday brought a much needed .70 inches of rain to the end of the Gunflint Trail.  Things were getting kind of crispy in the woods so I was happy to listen to the rain on the roof off and on throughout the day.  The rain showers brought welcome relief from the heat and gave the remaining blueberries a nice rinsing off.  The skies cleared in time for sunset so our Voyageur Crew could enjoy some more showers.

     It’s that time of the year for the annual evening sky show in the BWCA known as the Perseid’s Meteor Shower. The Crew was lucky enough to spot about 10 meteors in the little time they spent watching for them.  It’s a great display of soaring meteors with beautiful tails burning off as they fly through the sky.  Unfortunately when I got up to look into the sky at 4:00am the clouds had come in and they obscured my view.  I was only able to see one meteor through all of the clouds but I’m hoping tonight will be better.

     The Perseids are suppose to peak tonight after midnight displaying up to a comet a minute.  I’m hoping for clear skies and the will to stay awake long enough to see them.

PERSEID METEOR SHOWER: The annual Perseid meteor shower is underway. Earth is passing through a wide stream of debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle, and each time a fleck of comet dust hits Earth’s atmosphere–flash!–there is a meteor. Forecasters say the shower will peak on Thursday, August 12th, and Friday, August 13th. You can see Perseids flitting across the sky at any time between about 10 pm on Thursday evening and sunrise on Friday morning. Observers who get away from city lights can expect to count dozens of meteors per hour, especially during the dark hours before dawn.

If you go outside a little early on Thursday evening, around sunset, you’ll see a beautiful gathering of planets in the sunset sky–Venus, Mars, Saturn and the crescent Moon. It’s a nice way to start a meteor watch. Sky maps may be found at http://spaceweather.com