Watch how the Saudi Arabian sky rose with the “Pershawiyat” meteor showers

The “Pershawiyat” meteors crossed in the Saudi Arabian sky, embodied a marvelous shape through the luminous colors, and their ascent to the sky.

It peaks on August 12 and 13 of each year and can be seen with the naked eye. The comet (Swift Tuttle), discovered in 1862, is believed to be the source of these meteors, and it was named after the constellation Perseus or Perseus (carrier of Perseus).

Turki Al-Abbasi, general supervisor and founder of the Al-Wajh Governorate Photographers Group, documented this astronomical phenomenon in a captivating image after spending a long time following it. He confirmed to Al-Arabiya.net that during the passage of the comet (Swift Tuttle) with the Earth, it revolves around the sun once every 133 years. -100 meteors per hour, at a speed between 12-72 km per second north and northeast, in the evening until dawn.

For his part, the head of the Jeddah Astronomical Society, engineer Majed Abu Zahira, confirmed to Al Arabiya.net that the skies of Saudi Arabia and the Arab region are witnessing one of the best rains in the world. meteors of the year 2021, and in general, the Perseids are active during the nights of August 17-24, when the Earth passes through the debris of a comet – Swift Total – the source of the annual Perseid meteors.

bright meteors

Abu Zahira explained that the Perseids produce very bright meteors (fireballs) like the glow of Jupiter or Venus, and that there is no other comet that produces like them, as does Comet Swift- Tuttle, possibly due to the massiveness of its core, which is 26 kilometers in diameter and naturally divides into larger parts, where a recent five-year survey indicates the Perseids have more fireballs than any other meteor shower.

Perseidium monitoring

In order to monitor Pershawiyat meteors, he said, “It has to be from a dark place away from city lights, with a wide view of the sky to get the best results, and from those places ( Moon Valley) in the city of Asfan (120 km) north of Jeddah or other dark places. , the observer will also need about 40 minutes for his eye to adjust to the dark, and give himself at least an hour to see a meteor after arriving at the observation Its starting point will be in front of the constellation of Barshaush, high in the sky.

The reason for the name “Percephalus”

Abu Zahira said: When following the paths of Pershawish meteors, they seem to be rushing past the Barshawish stars, which is why they call them “Barshawish”. Several light years away, as meteors burn in the upper atmosphere of our planet, and if one of the meteors manages to reach the surface of the Earth, it will be called a meteorite, but very few meteors become meteorites, at due to the nature of the debris generated by comets.