Triple APOD - August 13, 2024: Perseid Meteors and Perseus Gems by Gabe Sewell
The Perseids meteor shower is probably the most well-known of the annual meteor showers, and for good reason. Annual meteor showers are caused by the earth passing through a debris cloud of dust and sand-sized particles associated with a particular comet, and they're named after particular constellations because the meteors tend to appear to radiate from a general spot in the sky, due to earth's motion through the debris field. The Perseids in ancient times radiated from, as you might've guessed, the constellation Perseus. But in current times the radiant has shifted more towards the border between Perseus, Cassiopea, and Camelopardalis, in front of several deep space objects seen in today's photo like the Double Cluster, the Heart and Soul Nebula, and the galaxy IC342.
Today's image is from the peak of the Perseids 2 years ago, in celebration of the peak of the 2024 Perseids over the previous two nights. Submit your astronomy photos if you'd like to be featured, especially of this year's Perseids!
Photo Details:
Nikon D610
Sigma 105mm f/1.4
Approximately 2 hours of 1-minute exposures, stacked with any visible meteors in each frame overlaid