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A year more, the rain of stars of the Perseids or Tears of St. Lawrence arrive back to our skies. The phenomenon will reach its maximum in the morning from 11 to 12 August , with an intensity that will reach between the 50 and 100 meteors per hour . A show that also this year will be accompanied by clear skies and Moon phase waning, so it can be enjoyed in all its splendor (as long as you choose a place with little light pollution).
The rain of stars of the Perseids happens every year in mid-August, when the planet passes through a field of dust and particles left behind by the Swift-Tuttle , a comet of 24 km in diameter that passed through the vicinity in the year 1992 and does not return until 2126. Interestingly, the proximity of the maximum of the meteor shower, the 10th of August, feast day of the martyr Spanish San Lorenzo , makes the Perseids are also known as Tears of San Lorenzo.
despite the name, the shooting stars are not stars moving across the sky. Are particles, usually the size of a grain of sand , which are upon the Earth and entering the atmosphere at high speeds, which can be between 10 and 50 kilometers per second. These speeds are so high that the friction warms it enough to desintegrarlas and emit light. Therefore, the rain of stars of the Perseids is not composed of stars, but out of particles of dust incandescent.
One of the advantages of this phenomenon is that it is visible to the naked eye : you just need to find a place with little light and a great view of the sky, as a large course in a wooded area or a secluded ridge of the lighting of the cities, and prepare for the show, one of the most anticipated of the summer.
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