Astrophotographer Chris Sheridan took this image of a Perseid fireball from Kerr Lake on the North Carolina – Virginia border on Friday, Aug. 12, 2016.
After waiting for hours in record-breaking heat for a glimpse of the much-anticipated Perseid metor shower of 2016, astrophotographer Chris Sheridan had reason to celebrate.
“I told myself numerous times last night, as I was sweating my a– off, that this trip to shoot might not have been the best idea I have had with this drenching heat. Then at 3:40 am … the pay-off. Spectacular!” he wrote in an image description sent in to Space.com.
Sheridan captured this image the image from Kerr Lake on the North Carolina – Virginia border on Friday (Aug. 12) during the peak of the Perseid meteor shower . And, he had a little celebration to mark the moment.
“Yeah, I did the fireball dance in the dark like nobody was watching,” Sheridan added. [See more awesome photos of the 2016 Perseids ]
The fireball shoots through in green creating a dazzling reflection on the lake. According to NASA research, the Perseid meteor shower produces more fireballs — bright meteors that streak across the sky — than any other annual shower, earning it the title of “fireball champion.”
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Perseid Meteor Shower Quiz: Test Your Cosmic Fireworks Smarts
The Perseid meteor shower is one of the most spectacular meteor showers of the year, occurring in early August. How much do you know about the celestial light show?
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The high rate of fireballs could have something to do with the meteor shower’s progenitor: Comet Swift-Tuttle. Every year, the Earth passes through a trail of dust left behind in the comet’s wake. The dust burns up in Earth’s atmosphere, creating the brilliant shower.
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