Follow Progress For Westhampton Beach

By:  Progress for Westhampton Beach

This week in the astrological forecast we reach the peak of the annual Perseid meteor showers, and with no moonlight this year to compete with the “shooting stars” we should be able to enjoy a terrific show.

Every year the earth’s orbit passes through the trail of the Comet Swift-Tuttle.  This comet has an orbit, similar to Haley’s Comet, that brings it around every 133 years.  It was first discovered by Lewis Swift and Horace Tuttle.  Swift and Tuttle each independently discovered the this comet on July 19, 1862.

Even though the comet Swift-Tuttle completes its orbit only once every 133 years ¹⁾due next in our neighborhood in 2196 after having traveled out in the vicinity of Pluto each year in late July and early August the Earth’s orbit takes us through the trail the comet Swift-Tuttle left behind.

The rubble and dust left from the comet slams into our atmosphere at nearly 130,000 miles per hour — the result is a fire by friction, that appear as “shooting stars.”   These all appear to originate from the double cluster in the constellation Perseus.   The stars in the Perseus constellation are light years away and the meteor shower takes place in our own atmosphere.  The meteors are superimposed in front of this constellation and appear to originate in the constellation Perseus.

The beach is a great place to get away from ambient light that interferes with good viewing.  Rogers Beach will be kept open Wednesday and Thursday night, all night, to permit convenient beach access.  Village officers will include the beach on their patrol to make sure everyone is safe and sound.

Whether you are a night owl or an early riser, it would be worth staying up a little later, or getting up a little earlier to see the Perseid meteor showers this year.  The weather is to be clear and with no moon it is an opportunity not to be missed, or as Jerry Lee Lewis sang “Goodness, Gracious, Great Balls of Fire” get out and see it for yourself !

Bring a beach chair, a blanket, and something warm to drink.  

Watch the sky and listen to the ocean ! !

ADDENDUM:  Between 12:00 and 1:00 a.m. there were several groups of stargazers stretched out along the dunes at Rogers Beach, and with only a few scattered clouds the meteors could been seen frequently.   Nice to see and share.