英仙座流星雨，白杨木峡谷州立公园，俄勒冈州，美国 Perseid meteor shower, Cottonwood Canyon State Park, Oregon (© Joshua Meador/Tandem Stills + Motion)

英仙座流星雨，白杨木峡谷州立公园，俄勒冈州，美国 Perseid meteor shower, Cottonwood Canyon State Park, Oregon (© Joshua Meador/Tandem Stills + Motion)

抬头看，它来了 Look up, incoming…

英仙座流星雨

当我们的祖先看到安静的夜空突然下起流星雨，他们会是什么感受？是惊惧还是惊叹？好在现在的我们已经知道，这是一场年度“灯光秀”，被称为英仙座流星雨，活跃期一般在每年的7月中旬至8月下旬。英仙座流星雨是由地球穿过斯威夫特-塔特尔彗星留下的碎片造成的，当这些碎片撞击地球大气层，就会产生炽热的流星雨。今天正是英仙座流星雨的高峰期，月亮预计只有10%的亮度，今晚可千万别错过“赏雨”哦！

Perseid meteor shower over Oregon

What must our ancestors have thought when they saw meteors light up the night sky? Was it terrifying or an event of wonder? Thankfully, we now know that this celestial cascade is a harmless annual event. The Perseid meteor shower thrills stargazers from mid-July to late August and is due to peak today. The Perseids are caused by Earth passing through debris left behind by the Comet Swift-Tuttle. When the cosmic debris hits our atmosphere, it disintegrates in a colorful, fiery light display. It's a good night to catch the Perseids if you can—the moon is projected to only be 10% illuminated, so the meteors should really stand out against the dark sky.