Delta Aquarids and Perseids Meteor Shower, Comet 289P/Blanpain - Astronomy Forecast

289P/Blanpain, formerly D/1819 W1 (Blanpain) is a short-period comet that was discovered by Jean-Jacques Blanpain on November 28th, 1819. Blanpain described the comet as having a “very small and confused nucleus”. Another independent discovery was made on December 5 of that year by J. L. Pons. Following this the comet was lost, and was given the designation ‘D’ (Disappeared or Dead). However in 2003, the orbital elements of newly discovered asteroid 2003 WY25 were calculated by Marco Micheli and others to be a probable match for the lost comet. Further observations of the asteroid in 2005 by David Jewitt using the University of Hawaii 2.2 m telescope on Mauna Kea, appeared to reveal a faint coma, which supports the theory that 2003 WY25 is the lost comet, or a part of it. The comet was officially established as periodic comet 289P in July 2013, after being rediscovered by the Pan-STARRS survey during an outburst event

The Perseids  are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift-Tuttle. The Perseids are so-called because the point from which they appear to come, called the radiant, lies in the constellation Perseus. The name derives in part from the word Perseides (Περσείδες), a term found in Greek mythology referring to the sons of Perseus.

The stream of debris is called the Perseid cloud and stretches along the orbit of the comet Swift-Tuttle. The cloud consists of particles ejected by the comet as it travels on its 133-year orbit. Most of the particles have been part of the cloud for around a thousand years. However, there is also a relatively young filament of dust in the stream that was pulled off the comet in 1865, which can give an early mini-peak the day before the maximum shower.

The earliest information on this meteor shower is found in Chinese annals in 36 AD. However credit for recognising the shower’s annual appearance is given to Adolphe Quetelet who reported in 1835 that there was a shower emanating from the constellation Perseus. Some Catholics refer to the Perseids as the “tears of St. Lawrence”, since 10 August is the date of that saint’s martyrdom.
A Perseid in 2007.
The shower is visible from mid-July each year, with the peak in activity between 9 and 14 August, depending on the particular location of the stream. During the peak, the rate of meteors reaches 60 or more per hour. They can be seen all across the sky, but because of the path of Swift-Tuttle’s orbit, Perseids are primarily visible in the northern hemisphere. As with many meteor showers, the visible rate is greatest in the pre-dawn hours, (since the side of the Earth nearest to turning into the sun scoops up more meteors as the Earth moves through space). Most Perseids disappear while at heights above 80 kilometres (50 mi)