We're having a tough month here in southern California. August has three big sky events this year - a total solar eclipse, a partial lunar eclipse, and a meteor shower - and we might get to see one of them.

The solar eclipse happened in a narrow strip across Siberia and China. The lunar eclipse on Saturday will put on a show for everyone on the whole other side of the planet. Neither have offered any hope for us here.

Our best chance of one of the August events happening here is the meteor shower Monday night, during the late night/early morning hours. It is then that we experience the peak of the annual Perseid meteor shower. But will the movements of the Moon, responsible for our other August phenomena, interfere with this one?

For those of you new to astronomy, a meteor shower is a wonderful thing to behold, with the sky putting on a fireworks show, free of charge.

It happens when earth's orbit happens to cross the orbit of a comet. Now I know what some of you may be thinking: Crossing
paths with a comet means death and destruction. That is true, but only if we are at the crossroads at the same time.

Think of it like an intersection of two circular streets; streets that have but one car on each, streets that are thousands of miles around. The chance that the two cars actually collide at the intersection is slim to none.

No, a meteor shower happens when we pass through the intersection and slam into the dust particles left by the comet which has already passed by and is long gone. The Perseid meteor shower is a result of our slamming into debris left behind from Comet Swift-Tuttle.

Because the orbit of Swift-Tuttle is slightly askew to our orbit, our Northern Hemisphere gets the brunt of it, and people there get a much better view of it than our southern friends. And we see the shower best when our planet swings around full-face into the crud stream. That means that after midnight is the time to see the best and brightest the shower has to offer.

And when the Perseids are good, they are amazing. Averaging about one per minute at the peak, the meteors are usually bright and beautiful.

I say "peak" because it actually takes several days to get through the debris. It is just that Tuesday, early morning, is when we go through the area most concentrated with the schmutz. That also means that if you have already seen some bright meteors in the sky in the last week, and/or if you see some in the next days, the prime suspects are Perseids.

Why are they called Perseids? The tradition in astronomy is to name a shower after the constellation from which the meteors appear to streak. You will notice, if you are able to see several of them that they appear to be shot out of the northern skies. If you had the time, you could draw lines back from the streaks to a point in the northern constellation of Perseus, their seeming point of origin.

Now, the not-so-good news. Our Moon, which put on the fabulous solar and lunar eclipse shows for the rest of the world, will partially ruin this year's Perseids. That is because that same orbit which blesses us with the eclipses will be taking the Moon close to Full by the time the Perseids peak. And a bright Moon can mean ruination for a meteor shower which practically demands the darkest skies. Good news? The Moon sets at about 2 AM.

Bottom line: If you want to see them at their best, be brave and adventurous and head outside after the moon has set. Wipe the sleep from your eyes, lie down, and look up. If they are good this year, you'll swear you are still dreaming.

Until next time, clear skies!