Mike Foylan - long-time Astronomy Ireland
member - has successfully photographed the meteor shower using special equipment
that automatically detects meteors as they blaze across the sky. To view these
images, please visit www.astronomy.ie/perseids2010.
"Mike successfully captured on camera some amazing meteors
and fireballs over the last few nights that formed part of the Perseid meteor
shower," says David Moore, Chairman of Astronomy Ireland. "As you can
see, the sky was lit up, and the meteor shower will continue over the next week,
so we still want people to go out and count meteors for our Nationwide Meteor
Watch!"
To take part in the Perseid Count visit our
webpage HERE. Don't
forget to email your reports to meteor@astronomy.ie!
SUN WATCH THIS WEEKEND
Coinciding with the Perseid Meteor Shower is Astronomy
Ireland's weekly free Sun
Watch on Saturday, from 1pm, at the Astronomy Ireland Shop in Artane, Dublin
5 (get a map HERE). The Sun is
displaying some huge sunspots, which often explode and throw out millions of
tonnes of material in the direction of Earth, causing spectacular
aurora.
At the Sun Watch, you will be able to use special equipment to
view the Sun close up safely and under the guidance of professionals. This is a
great astronomy activity for all the family, so be sure to bring along some
people to see our parent star!