What could be more dramatic than Venus, Saturn, Mars lining up with the crescent moon? Imagine the same line up spiced up by trails from the The Perseid meteor. Yes, now that is what we are talking about.

Perseids Shower is the debris from the Swift Tuttle Comet which is expected to put up a spectacular show around the nights of 12 Aug. Meteors as many as 100 per hour can be seen during these days when the shower is expected to be at its peak.

With the urban glare the trails of meteors can be lost easily so it is always better to rush to a rustic setting to witness the maximum number of meteors zoom past the moon. The display is extra lucrative as you can always set your eyes on Saturn, Mars, Venus or even Jupiter while waiting for the shower which typically can be observed at 10- 11 in the night.

Here is a little and rough schedule of the events:

11 August: 33% crescent moon in the proximity of Jupiter, just above the bright Venus. To add to the show a appearance of the  Red-giant star Aldebaran would make the sky more vibrant.
12 August: 24% crescent, Jupiter rises slightly making way for the shooting stars. All the planets and moon line up.
13 August: Lowered meteor shower count, planets continue to tantalize you.

NASA is seeking the help of the amateur sky watchers to count the Meteoroids so if you are watching and counting them do send your counts to  NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office to study and model the Perseid debris stream.

Android users and Iphone can use the “Meteor Counter”  available to download on Android Marketplace and Apple's App Store.

(AW- Anil)