You can still watch the Perseid meteor shower despite a bright moon
Sure, everybody likes big, bright moons.
Think of all the music composed about them: Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata," Bing Crosby's "Moonlight Becomes You," and, of course, "Moonlight Drive," by the Doors.
But next week, a badly timed big, bright moon might put the kibosh on the Perseids, traditionally the best meteor of the year.
August's full moon is Sunday, and the Perseids peak before dawn Tuesday, when 99 percent of the moon will be visible: Bright moonlight tends to wash out many celestial objects, including meteors.
So, will the Perseids be worth getting up for?
"Depends on your point of view," said Rich Talcott, senior editor of Astronomy magazine. "It will still be one of the best meteor showers of the year.
"The calculations I made for people under a dark sky is 20 to 25 meteors per hour. That's down from the usual 100, but 20 to 25 is better than most meteor showers at their best."
A meteor shower occurs when the Earth rolls through debris left by a comet (the Perseids' parent is Comet Swift-Tuttle); these bits of comet stuff, usually about the size of a grain of rice, burn up in the Earth's atmosphere, producing what some people call shooting or falling stars.
Meteor showers are named for the constellations from which they seem to radiate; the Leonids, for example, seem to radiate from the constellation Leo, while the Geminids seem to radiate from Gemini, and the Perseids seem to radiate from the constellation Perseus.
The best time for viewing the Perseids will be an hour before dawn (sunrise is 6:58 a.m. Tuesday).
At that time, the moon will be in the southwest, and Perseus will be in the northeast.
"If you lie down or sit so the moon is at your back and face north, you can cut down on the moonlight," Talcott said. "It's better if the moon is behind a building or some trees."
Making matters worse for meteor watchers is that Sunday's full moon is also a super moon, which is when the full moon happens at the same time that the moon is at its closest approach to Earth (perigee).
A super moon is 30 percent brighter than a normal full moon.
Carol Stewart, astronomer at the Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium, sees a silver lining in the timing of the super moon.
"People are so annoyed," she said. "They say, 'Oh, it's a full or bright moon; it will wash out the meteors.' But there's still a beautiful moon to enjoy."
As with any astronomical activity, the you'll get the best Perseid show away from lights.
"Where you have a lot of light pollution, with the addition of the moon, more meteors will be washed out than at a dark site with the bright moon," Stewart said. "But at a dark site, even with the moon, you'll still see some meteors."