Adler Planetarium Hosting Perseids Watch Party In Wheaton
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Adler Planetarium is offering front row seats to watch the Perseid meteor shower Wednesday night.
The Planetarium has teamed up with Catigny Park in west suburban Wheaton to host a meteor shower party starting at 6 p.m.
The meteor shower peaks Wednesday night into Thursday morning, with as many as 90 to 100 meteors an hour, and this year they won't compete with moon light, since the moon sets around 6:30 p.m.
"It depends on the weather, of course, but if the sky is clear, this should be the peak night of the annual Perseid meteor shower, which is the best, or one of the best meteor showers of the year," said Alan MacRobert, senior editor of Sky and Telescope Magazine.
Podcast
However, thanks to light pollution in metropolitan areas, the Perseids could be tough to see in the Chicago area, unless you're looking through a telescope.
"If you're out late at night, under a good, dark sky, you might see a meteor a minute. This is not like a fireworks show. If you're in suburban light pollution, one (meteor) every few minutes; and in the heart of the city, you probably don't have much chance at all," he said.
