Explanation:
Each August, as planet Earth swings through dust trailing
along the orbit of periodic
comet
Swift-Tuttle,
skygazers can enjoy the Perseid
Meteor Shower.
The shower should
build to its peak now, best seen
from later tonight after moonset, until dawn tomorrow morning when
Earth moves through the denser part of the wide dust trail.
But shower meteors have been spotted for many days, like this
bright Perseid streaking through skies near
Lake Balaton, Hungary on August 8.
In the foreground is the region's Church of St. Andrew ruin,
with bright Jupiter dominating the sky to its right.
Two galaxies lie in the background of the wide-angle, 3
frame panorama; our own
Milky Way's luminous arc, and
the faint smudge of the more distant
Andromeda Galaxy
just above the ruin's leftmost wall.
If you watch
for Perseid meteors tonight,
be sure and check out the early evening sky show too,
featuring bright planets and
a young crescent Moon near the
western horizon after sunset.
