Yesterday evening, a number of us held an astronomy night at Dwejra for the general public, with the aim of observing the Perseid meteor shower. It is a much-loved semi-annual fixture (depending on the moon phase), and this year we were rewarded with a number of bright ones. By ensuring places like Dwejra stay dark, we can all continue to enjoy such breathtaking views of our night sky – a window to a marvellous universe.

Below I am including two photographs I obtained during this event, following an overview of the night sky and its mythologies that I gave for those present.

The first image shows a shooting star – actually a very bright one (termed a fireball) exhibiting a blue-green tinge due to the presence of magnesium. The reddish “star” to the left is the planet Mars. The core of our galaxy, the Milky Way, majestically arches across the frame.

The second capture shows the different hues of a Perseid meteor, which are a combination of emission from atoms & molecules in our atmosphere, glowing as the meteor vaporises in Earth’s atmosphere, and metal atoms in the meteoroid itself. (Magnesium, for instance, gives off a blue/green light, whereas Sodium emits yellow/orange.) The bright, reddish object to the right is the planet Mars.