This is the 2016 entry in the astronomical event live blog series.
It is a chance to look to the sky, and report on what you see.
As in 2013, this year’s astronomical event live blog is for the annual Perseid meteor shower.
FAQ for the Live Blog
If I look to the sky, and see clouds not meteors, because it is cloudy where I am, what should I do?
You can report on the clouds that you see, if you like.
In 2011, an asteroid near pass was liveblogged. No one actually saw the asteroid passing near. The big asteroid passing near was very small, and very far away.
Is it likely to be cloudy where I am?
If you are in a place on this expected cloud cover map, you can use it to make a guess.
What is messed up about the cloud cover map above?
Places expected to be cloudy look like they will be clear, and places expected to be clear look like they will be cloudy. At least to me.
What does the constellation Perseus look like?
It normally looks like this:
What should the constellation Perseus look like tonight?
Cloud cover, presence of tall buildings, and hemisphere depending, something like this:
How especially spectacular will this year’s Perseid meteor shower be?
- Best in years (NPR).
- Best in many years (Huffington Post).
- Best in seven years (Newsledge).
- Best in a decade (Popular Mechanics).
- Most spectacular in a decade (Daily Kos).
- Best in 20 years (Astronomy, Globe and Mail, Patch).
- Greatest fireworks show in your life (Quartz).
- Among the best ever (Quartz).
- Especially beautiful (CTV).
- Especially captivating (Globe and Mail).
- Especially dramatic (North Country Public Radio).
- Especially good (NPR).
- Especially intense (Montreal Gazette).
- Especially strong (Sky and Telescope).
- Especially spectacular (Bring Me the News, CBC, CTV, Fox Carolina, Huffington Post, LAist, Newsday, PBS, Standard-Examiner, Virginian Pilot, WFIR, WINK).
- Especially vibrant (DCist).
- Especially vivid (National Geographic).
- Extra awesome (KXAN, Space.com).
- Extra dazzling (CTV).
- Extra exciting (Time Warner).
- Extra intense (DCist).
- Extra meteor-y (PC).
- Extra special (Independent, Palm Beach Post, Perf Science).
- Extra spectacular (CBC, Digital Journal, PC, Timeout).
- Extra stellar (CTV).
- Twice as awesome (Washington Post).
- Twice as good (Birmingham UK News, Christian Science Monitor, Independent, Science Alert, Scitech Nation).
- Twice as impressive (Mic).
- Twice as nice (Press of Atlantic City, Minnesota Public Radio).
- Twice as spectacular (Business Insider, Breaking News, CBS, CNET, Salon).
How overhyped will this year’s meteor shower be?
How should the Forbes story be described?
- Stargazing buzzkill (Patch).
What happened to the annual astronomical event live blog in 2014?
It totally slipped my mind that year.