Meteor Showers Begin Peak, Jupiter / Mars Conjunction for Oregon, Washington, Coast, Portland, Seattle

Published 8/09/24 at 6:55 p.m.
By Andre' GW Hagestedt, Oregon Coast Beach Connection

(Portland, Oregon) – Persieds, Jupiter and Mars: oh my. (Above: Manzanita and starfall)

That's what's in store for Pacific Northwest skies over the weekend, for places like the Oregon coast, Washington coast, or Seattle, Portland, Yakima, Ashland, Eugene or Silverton. The peak of the Persieds meteor shower is happening from about tonight through Monday overnight (August 13), with very dark places seeing up to 60 to 100 meteors per hour. This week also features a very bright Jupiter hanging low in the skies, with a reddish Mars getting crammed up against it.

However, skies may have other ideas for those on the coastlines and other areas. Towns like Bandon, Westport, La Push, Seaside, Port Orford, Newport or Manzanita are likely socked in throughout the weekend, and other parts of Washington and Oregon are getting clouds and / or wildfire smoke. Some of that looks to clear later, however.

Jim Todd, astronomy expert with Portland's OMSI, said the Persieds will likely be at their best on August 12 and 13 – in the wee hours of the night. Moreover, it's quite a broad meteor shower and the days just before and after can still yield plenty of shooting stars.

See Washington Coast Weather - Oregon Coast Weather

“Made of tiny space debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle, the Perseids are named after the constellation Perseus,” Todd said. “This is because the direction, or radiant, from which the shower seems to come in the sky lies in the same direction as Perseus. The Perseids are widely sought after by astronomers and stargazers because most years at its peak, one can see 60 to 100 meteors in an hour from a dark place.”

Most of the meteors are seen looking about 50 degrees from the “radiant,” which lies between Perseus and Cassiopeia.

Bandon, courtesy Manuela Durson - see Manuela Durson Fine Arts

“In 2024, the half illuminated moon will set near 1am local daylight saving time,” Todd told Oregon Coast Beach Connection. “This is a favorable coincidence as this is the time that strong activity begins to occur from this shower.”

Todd said you'll need to find a location that gives you as wide a view as possible of the sky, with few obstructions. If you're in the city – even smaller ones like Monmouth, McMinnville, Drain or Cottage Grove – you'll want to be where artificial lights are at a minimum. Getting just out of town into the country will be a great idea. This is why beach towns like Cannon Beach, Oceanside or Gold Beach are perfect when clear.

“Meteor watching is an unaided-eye event but binoculars are handy for watching trails (persistent trains) that may hang in the sky for one or more seconds after a meteor's passage,” Todd said.

Cape Foulweather under the Milky Way / Oregon Coast Beach Connection

If you've noticed a really bright star in the east as of late from Oregon or Washington, that's the planet Jupiter. It's been putting on quite a show.

On August 14, Jupiter and Mars will be at a conjunction - just 0.19 degrees apart due to a planetary alignment. It happens just after midnight on Wednesday, August 14.

“This rare event sight won't occur again until December 2033,” Todd said. “The last conjunction was in October 2015. This conjunction will be a great event for telescope owners and astrophotographers. From Portland, both Jupiter and Mars within constellation of Taurus, will rise after 12:56 am from the northeastern horizon. Although they appear close, the two are more than 300 million miles apart.”

Tip for Photographers: when rain stops early this week, look to the shoreline at night for "glowing waves" - this is a good possibility this time of year and will make an excellent shot with shooting stars - Bioluminescent Phytoplankton: What Makes Glowing Sand On Oregon Coast, Washington

Weather may clear up a little on the Oregon coast and Washington coast by then, with forecasts so far predicting a fair amount of breaks in nighttime clouds.

Satellite above Portland and the aurora borealis this May / Oregon Coast Beach Connection

Jupiter is at a whopping magnitude of -2.18, making it the brightest object in the sky by far. On that night it will be at a distance of 5.37 AU or 499 million miles from earth.

“Reddish Mars will be at 0.83 magnitude at a distance of 142 million miles away,” Todd said. “As a result, from our earthbound line of sight, Mars and Jupiter will appear to be in the same place. During this conjunction, the two planets are close enough together that both will fit in the same field of a small telescope.”

You can soak in that conjunction until the Astronomical twilight begins a 4:14 am followed by sunrises at 6:16 am.

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Andre' GW Hagestedt is editor, owner and primary photographer / videographer of Oregon Coast Beach Connection, an online publication that sees over 1 million pageviews per month. He is also author of several books about the coast.

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