BBC Sky at Night - UK (2021-08)

August 2021 BBC Sky at Night Magazine 31

sail through the stream of dusty particles over the

course of a few weeks and the result is the Perseid

meteor shower.

While we know that the Perseid meteor shower will

happen this month (see ‘The Sky Guide’, page 46) and

that the Moon, for the most part, will be out of the

way, the biggest factor affecting how good the show

will be is, as always, the cloud cover on the nights

around the peak. While we can’t control the weather,

there are many ways we can ensure that we have the

best possible chance of seeing Perseids and enjoying

the spectacle.

Strength in numbers

Often when astronomers talk about the number

of meteors visible during a meteor shower, like the

Perseids, they neglect to mention that a great many

of the meteors that make up those numbers will be

Follow our top tips and get the most from your imaging session

Photographing the Perseids

1. The basic kit
   A basic DSLR or bridge camera – with a standard, wide, kit
   lens – and a solid photo tripod are ideal for simple meteor
   photography. Focus the lens by pointing at a bright star,
   zooming in on the Live View if you have it, and adjusting the
   focus ring until the star appears as small as possible. Then, set
   your ISO setting to a relatively high value, point your camera
   skyward and start taking 10 to 30 second-long exposures.
   2. Take as many images as you can
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   view, so you’ll want to take as many images as you can to have
   the best chance. This can be achieved by setting your camera
   to continuous shooting mode, if it has it, and using a basic
   cable release or an intervalometer; these usually have the
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   4. How to identify a meteor in your shots
   Meteor photography is hard. Don’t be dismayed by comparisons
   with misleading social media pictures – many ‘meteor’ images
   online show satellite trails. Meteors tend to have a slight green
   tint to their ‘tails’ and are cocktail-stick shaped, whereas satellite
   trails often begin and end abruptly and are an even thickness.
   Short-lived shooting stars will only appear on a single exposure,
   but satellites often show in the frames before and after.


2. Prepare for a long night
   To be in with a chance of capturing a Perseid meteor, your
   camera’s going to have to operate for a long time. Make sure
   you have the battery fully charged, and a couple of spares
   on standby if possible, as it will drain quickly in the cold with
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   the lens too; some meteor photographers use specialist dew
   heaters on their camera optics to combat this.

Meteor

Satellite trail

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