UIS to hold a virtual Perseid meteor star party on August 11

The University of Illinois Springfield Astronomy-Physics Program will broadcast a virtual star party for the peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower live on Zoom (rain or shine) from 8:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesday, August 11.

The star party was originally scheduled to be held in-person at Lincoln Memorial Garden, but will instead take place in an online format due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

John Martin, UIS associate professor of astronomy/physics, will give tips for viewing the Perseid meteors, finding bright planets, the Summer Triangle, the Big Dipper and other bright stars and constellations in summer evening sky and answer astronomy questions submitted live. If weather permits there will also be live views of the night sky.

The link for the Zoom event will be posted at go.uis.edu/summerstarparties and @UISObservatory on Twitter. Participants are encouraged to follow the Twitter account for updates.

The UIS Astronomy-Physics Program will also be holding virtual star parties on Friday nights this fall. For more information, visit go.uis.edu/starparties or contact John Martin at 217-206-8342 or jmart5@uis.edu.