[Faline]

In an unusual picture taken from aboard the International Space Station, a meteor streaks toward Earth below. Astronaut Ronald Garan, Jr., was among the sky-watchers who snapped a "shooting star" during the peak of this year's Perseid meteor shower.

This year's cosmic fireworks were somewhat dampened by the glare of a full moon. But the height of the Perseids still offered a crowd-pleasing sight for many people worldwide.

The Perseids are almost always a really good show, with usually on average about 50 to 60 meteors an hour during the peak.

[Faline]

Other pictures from the same meteor shower:

Natural rock formations shaped roughly like human figures seem to stare at the heavens during this year's Perseid meteor shower in a picture taken August 13. Hundreds of the stone "stargazers" stand in the village of Kuklici, about 49 miles (80 kilometers) east of Skopje, the capital of Macedonia.

In general, meteors are produced when small pieces of space dust impact Earth's atmosphere at high speeds: "The streak of light we see is this debris burning up because of friction with the atmosphere," the Oregon science museum's Todd said. In the case of the Perseids, the grains that make meteors are leftover pieces from the comet Swift-Tuttle.


The streak of a Perseid meteor seems to cut through the blade of a wind turbine in a picture taken August 13 in Kavala, Greece.
As with other annual meteor showers, the Perseids are named after the constellation from which they appear to radiate—in this case, the constellation Perseus.


Layered limestone formations stand guard as a Perseid meteor streaks over El Torcal de Antequera, a nature reserve in southern Spain, on August 13.

[Viking64]

I can remember when I first got really interested in astronomy about 20 years ago. Every August I would watch the Perseid Meteor Shower at a golf course that was miles away from any light. I could lay down on the neatly trimmed grass and get a perfectly unobstructed view of the whole sky as there were no trees for quite a distance.

[kellyhound]

how cool is that

[luton loyal]