FT265


Very early in the morning of 12 August this year, the Perseid meteor shower will do its annual summer star turn. Once again, my girlfriend and I will be watching the light-polluted, 21st-century London skies, hoping to catch sight of some blink-and-you-miss it fiery trails above. The Perseids this year will be of a stronger than usual ‘storm intensity,’ with several hundred meteors hitting the atmosphere every hour. Regrettably, the shower will peak around dawn – this and a Full Moon on the night will probably mean our view of the Perseids will be rubbish.

Nowadays, we know what meteors are.