Look up! Perseid meteor shower will light up northwest skies overnight

NASA expects the night sky to light up for the peak of the Perseids shower between Aug. 11 and 12 when as many as 100 to 200 per hour can be spotted in the dark skies under optimal conditions.
 
And northwest stargazers are in luck as the weather should be perfect for it on late Thursday night, early Friday morning.

"These clouds clearing away will allow us to see them perfectly," KIRO 7 News Meteorologist Morgan Palmer says. "We'll be cloud-free across all locations of Western Washington so the show should be spectacular."

>> Download the free KIRO 7 Weather app here
 
A brief explanation of Perseids
 
Every 133 years, the comet Swift-Tuttle orbits the sun.

The comet last made its closest approach to the sun back in 1992 and has been moving away from the sun - and earth - ever since. Swift-Tuttle is not due back “in our neighborhood” until the year 2126, but each August, the earth moves through the debris of dust and small rocks left behind. The earth moves through the densest of the debris between Aug. 11 and 12.

Every Perseid meteor is actually a tiny piece of debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle, which disintegrates in flashes of light when it hits the Earth’s atmosphere. They’re called Perseids because they seem to originate from the constellation Perseus.

This year expect an "outburst effect"
 
The Perseids are expected to be super-charged by what NASA is calling an "outburst effect" this year. Bill Cook, who leads NASA's Meteoroid Environments Office in Huntsville, Alabama, says we can thank Jupiter for an expected increase in the number of meteors this year. Usually, the Earth just grazes the edge of the Swift-Tuttle debris stream, but this year, Jupiter's gravity will tug the debris stream closer and Earth should plow through the middle of them.

A Perseid outburst last occurred in 2009.

Here's the time you should look up
 
The peak time to look will be once the moon sets which will be after midnight.

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However, if you can't stay up that late, you may still see a few meteors if you gaze toward the northern sky. Plus, the evening sky will also be spectacular as Saturn, Venus, Mars, Mercury and Jupiter will all be making appearances in the southern and western skies.
 
Where should you go to see it?
 
The best advice is to find a place where you have as much view of the sky as possible, and be away from city lights. Also, be sure to allow yourself at least 20 to 30 minutes out in the dark for your eyes to adjust. Your eyes will not see them if you only go outside for a few minutes after being inside in the lights.

Cox Media Group