Local photographer Dan Hicks, in conjunction with Subaru of Cranbrook, is presenting a unique stargazing event, on August 12, at the peak of the annual Perseid Meteor Shower.
The Perseids are prolific meteor showers associated with the comet Swift–Tuttle, and are so called because the point from which they appear to hail (called the radiant) lies in the constellation Perseus [information courtesy Wikipedia].
The last time the Perseid peak coincided with a new moon was in 2016 and the next such occasion will not be until 2021.
Subaru of Cranbrook’s “Night of the Falling Stars” invites participants to a night under the summer sky from evening twilight of Sunday, August 12, to morning twilight of Monday, August 13, to take in the spectacular astronomical light show.
Events will take place at a dark-sky location, well away from urban lighting, where the Milky Way spans a black, starry sky.
The event is free, but participants will be responsible for their own safety, including travel to the location, and must register with Subaru of Cranbrook to obtain a non-transferable pass, after providing the following information:
• Name, license plate number, and vehicle model and year;
• Anticipated number of passengers;
• Email address.
By accepting a pass, a registered driver is agreeing to the following:
• Children will be accompanied by a parent of adult guardian;
• Vehicles will arrive at the location no later than 8:30 pm of August 12;
• The gate will be re-opened momentarily at 5:30 a.m. August 13, and for the rest of the day at 8 a.m.
• Pets are not allowed;
• Images of the event may be used by Subaru for promotional purposes.
Bring reclining lawn chairs, warm clothing, blankets and sleeping bags and pocket-sized flashlights. Tenting and sleeping space will be available in the open area.
A limited number of secluded campsites will be available for $20 each.
Subaru of Cranbrook’s Night of the Falling Stars will be entirely weather dependent. Registered drivers will receive an email notification by noon of August 12, confirming whether the event will proceed or if it has been cancelled due to forecast of cloudy skies.
A confirmation of its proceeding will disclose the sky-dark location and access route.
By Dan Hicks
Away from city lights, where the Milky Way yet survives, the southern East Kootenay July night sky is graced with all five visible planets, spanning the sky along the ecliptic from west to east; Mercury, Venus – our brilliant evening star, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars – the Red Planet, now the fourth brightest object in the sky (after the sun, moon and Venus).
Mercury, our solar system’s smallest planet and closest to the sun, is the only difficult one to see – a binocular object, setting at 10 p.m.
Venus is the second inner planet and the hottest, with a 462°C mean surface temperature; all the rest are – from our Earthly prospective – outer planets.
Mars is the last planet to rise in our mid-July night sky, at 11:30 p.m. The second smallest planet, it comes closest to Earth on July 31, a sight to be seen because it has not been this close to us since the summer of 2003, and will not be as close again until 2035.
Unfortunately, Mars’s telescopic grandeur is much diminished by a global dust storm that has enveloped the planet since mid- June and may have killed NASA’s long-serving solar-powered rover Opportunity).
On August 12, the annual Perseid Meteor Shower peaks in a dark moonless sky and in a unique stellar event, a Cranbrook automobile dealership is hosting a Night of the Falling Stars at a dark-sky location where stargazers will be able to view the incoming Perseids vaporize in our mesosphere and identify the eternal bright stars and constellations that have transited across the summer night sky since before there were humans here to contemplate the stars.