Published 11/08/2021 23:19 / Updated on 11/08/2021 23:25
(Credit: AFP/Ye Aung THU)
You are Brasilia population Will have the opportunity to see Perseid meteor shower 28 times per hour in the early hours of Thursday (12/8). information from Brazilian Meteorite Monitoring Network (PRAMUM), which calculates the average rate in capitals across the country.
According to Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Brasilia (UnB), Paolo Brito, the constellation Perseu – which gives its name to this phenomenon – begins in the northeast around 2 a.m., with an expected peak eruption from 4 a.m. until the end of dawn.
“So, to get a good view, the northern horizon should be clear, and not many lights in that direction. This meteor is a relic Cometa Swift Tuttle that leaves it in its path around the sun, and as the Earth passes through this region each year, it attracts a portion of this debris, the astronomer explains.
An astronomer who also trained at UnB, Adriano Leonês, adds that it is necessary to leave the city, where there is a lot of light, and go to an area with little light. “It should be a dark place away from city light, like a rural area. Then you have to look at the sky to identify meteor showers,” the physicist explains.
According to him, it is not recommended to use a telescope to monitor meteor showers. “If you don’t know where the rain is, it will greatly limit the scope of the constellation. The ideal situation is to use binoculars to observe meteor showers. Depending on the size of the binoculars, you can see the entire constellation,” he adds.
The astronomer explains that the southern hemisphere usually has a shallow view of the meteor explosion with the naked eye. Cities less than 30 degrees in southern latitude, from Rio Grande do Sul down the country, for example, won’t be able to see the explosion in the sky. “We are in a situation where the constellation Perseus appears shallow in the sky, lying above the horizon towards the north. For this reason, we cannot see all of it,” concludes Adriano.
