Every summer in the month of August we have a highly anticipated event, especially for sky lovers: the ‘Tears of San Lorenzo’ or Perseids. A real meteor shower that extends over several days in different corners of Spain.
Like a good meteor shower, and if you want to enjoy them both through your eyes and through your iPhone camera to immortalize the moment, you will have to look for a dark place. We currently live in dark areas with high light pollution which makes it really difficult to view these phenomena comfortably. In this article we tell you how you can follow them, even without the moon in sight.
What are the Tears of Saint Lawrence or Perseid rain?
Although the tears of San Lorenzo are a shower of meteorites and different scattered particles, they also have an interesting mythological history behind them. The name ‘Perseids’ comes from directly from Perseus, son of Zeus and the nymph Danae, that was born from a golden shower.
But if we look at its second name, Saint Lawrence’s tears, we do not find a mythological story, but quite the opposite: very spooky. And it is that on August 10, the day we can see this phenomenon, commemorates the martyrdom suffered by Saint Lawrence in Rome in the year 258. Thus, tradition says that this shower of stars are the tears she shed at that moment of so much pain.
When are the Perseids 2024
When it comes to viewing the Perseids, it is important to keep in mind that the meteor shower allows us to see 50 to 100 meteors every hour, and it always occurs in the middle of summer only in the northern hemisphere of the Earth.
Generally, this phenomenon can be enjoyed between July 17 and August 24. But the reality is that the peak time when a greater number of meteors will be seen crossing our sky is between August 11 and 13. Specifically, between 12 August at 3pm and 6pm. Unfortunately, to see them properly, it is recommended that the sky be clear and the darker the better.
The best time to see the Perseids: when the Moon is not there
Although the days of greatest activity in the sky will occur between August 11 and 13, 2024, there is a special day in which The Moon will be hidden by Saturn. We speak specifically August 21, where the sky will be much clearer and with much less light as our satellite will not be in the sky.
Although the most important thing is to find a place where the sky is completely clear of clouds. And we should not forget about the darkness in the environmentforcing us to go to a mountain far from population centers where it will be much easier to see the Perseids and take photos or videos of them.
Best places to see the Perseids
As we have said, the best way to see the stars is to be in a place that is as dark as possible to avoid light pollution. Obviously, there are favorite places to see this phenomenon such as an national park or near an observatoryBut the reality is that you will be able to find a really good place close to your home.
You will simply have to access the website of Light Pollution Mapwhich as its name indicates, will show you specifically where there is less light pollution. Ideally, you should go to an area that is colored dark blue, but this can be a bit tricky. So, the advice in short is to go to the area with the least light pollution around you.
This map is really accurate, and you will be able to click on any point in the geography of Spain to get data on the amount of lighting that has been reported at that point. In this way, With your own iPhone you can determine where it is best to be located to record this phenomenon in a comfortable way.
Apps to follow the Perseids
Today in the App Store you can find an application for practically any type of action. In this way, we will be able to find options for give us information about where these meteorite bodies will pass. The main applications are:
- Night Skyis free and easy to use by simply entering the term ‘Perseids’ in English into your search engine to obtain information.
- Sky Viewoffers information about this meteor shower with the main times and the number of bodies that will be able to fly over our heads.
- Star Walk 2an authentic star map for this year 2024 where all the astronomical events that we can expect come together.
Images | Kanenori