Celestial events left to be seen this year include two partial solar eclipses, one total lunar eclipse, several meteor showers and Mars passing the closest it has been to Earth in 15 years, the Central Weather Bureau’s astronomical observatory said.
There will be 34 visible meteor showers this year, but only the Perseids and the Geminids will be relatively unaffected by moonlight and they will produce a larger number of meteors, observatory director Cheng Chun-yueh (鄭俊岳) said.
The Perseids meteor shower will be observable from July 17 to Aug. 24 and peak on Aug. 13, while the Geminids meteor shower will last from Dec. 4 to Dec. 17 and peak on Dec. 14, Cheng said, adding that the peaks of the two meteor showers will not occur before or after a full moon, so the level of light pollution from the moon is relatively small.
As long as no clouds obscure the sky at night, people will have a chance to see the meteor showers by simply lifting their heads, he said, adding that when the Perseids and Geminids reach their peaks, viewers can expect to see about 110 and 120 meteors per hour respectively.
Although an average of two meteors can be seen per minute, meteors appear unevenly — sometimes seven or eight meteors can be seen per minute, while at other times, several minutes will pass before a single meteor is seen, Cheng said.
While the partial solar eclipses on July 13 and Aug. 11 will not be visible in Taiwan, viewers could see the total lunar eclipse on July 28, he said, adding that it will begin at 1:13am on July 28 with a penumbral eclipse as the moon comes into contact with the penumbra and end at 7:30am as the moon leaves the penumbra.
It will be visible to the human eye for three hours and 55 minutes from 2:24am, when the partial eclipse begins, to 6:19am, when it ends, Cheng said.
The full phase will not be visible from Taiwan, but the blood moon during the lunar eclipse’s totality could be observed, he said.
Less than a day earlier, on July 27, Mars come the closest it has been to Earth in 15 years. The next time this event will occur will likely be in 17 years in September 2035.
Viewers do not have to go to the mountains to enjoy these astronomical events, Cheng said.
As long as people avoid the city and find an empty or suburban area with a relatively low level of light pollution, they should be able to experience an “astronomical feast,” he added.
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