August 2024 Meteor Showers Visible From Florida

 

Perseid Meteor Shower. Credit: NASA/JPL

SARASOTA, Florida — Three different meteor showers will stream across the Florida night sky on different dates in August 2024. 

The southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower and the Alpha Capricornid meteor shower will appear from the south, and the Perseid meteor shower will appear from the north to viewers in the Sunshine State.

How to Watch The Perseid Meteor Shower

The Perseid meteor shower is active from July 17 through August 24, 2024, peaking on August 11 and 12.

The Perseid meteor shower produces more fireballs than any other meteor shower.

Skywatchers should be able to see between 60 and 70 meteors per hour at the peak.

The best time to see the Perseids from Florida is between midnight and dawn.

The Perseid meteor shower will be visible almost all over the world but will be best seen in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Perseids appear to come from the constellation Perseus, which gives the meteor shower its name.

How to Watch The Alpha Capricornid Meteor Shower

The Alpha Capricornids are active from July 3 through August 15, peaking on July 29.

These meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Capricornus, which gives the meteor shower its name.

The Alpha Capricornid meteor shower produces slow and bright meteors, up to 5 per hour, and often produces fireballs.

In Florida, the Alpha Capricornids are visible all night and reach their highest point in the night sky around 1 a.m. EDT.

How to Watch The Southern Delta Aquariid Meteor Shower

The southern Delta Aquariids are active from July 12 until August 23.

This meteor shower can produce up to 25 meteors per hour on the peak night of July 30, 2024.

The Delta Aquariids can be viewed in the Southern Hemisphere and southern latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere.

The southern Delta Aquariids appear over Florida after 10 p.m. EDT until an hour before sunrise, reaching their highest point in the night sky around 3 a.m. EDT.

These meteors appear to originate to the south from the constellation Aquarius, which gives the meteor shower its name.

How to Watch The August 2024 Meteor Showers

For optimal viewing, find an open sky, lie on the ground, and look straight up into the dark sky.

Your eyes can take up to 30 minutes to adjust to the darkness, so allow plenty of time for your eyes to dark-adapt..