Perseid Meteor Shower Falls Short in 2009

Plunk down in the open desert like a neon jellyfish tendrils spreading into the pitch, Las Vegas, Nevada is well known for its bright lights, big name stars and glam shows …but once a year a different kind of show can be seen just outside of town. The vast open space and dark skies of the desert provides the perfect platform for viewing the Perseid Meteor Shower. Over the years I have seen this show from a boat anchored at Echo Bay, sitting on a sunroof in the Valley of Fire, a hilltop in Sandy Valley, from the hood of a BMW up at Mt. Charleston, a Jeep bed in Pahrump and more. Sometimes it was a struggle to work around clouds and moonlight that diffused viewing, but always I was rewarded for my efforts.

2009 promised to be a banner showing. Web sites such as www.space.com and www.nasa.com promised up to 90 meteors per hour on peak viewing night August 12. For those of you that have never seen a meteor shower imagine a sky full of falling stars. It is the ultimate ooh and ah injection!

This year I was joined by a fellow California transplant and two visiting Chicagoans. We stuffed the trunk of the car with folding chairs, blankets, pillows and water and headed to the Valley of Fire about 30 minutes north of Las Vegas heading toward Utah. By 2:30 a.m., we were spread out facing north and slightly east, the direction designated for best viewing. There were a few cloud clusters, but plenty of open space. The clouds actually helped cover the quarter moon. We anxiously awaited our first meteor.

In the 4 hours, we saw only 20 moderate meteors collectively and maybe one long tail meteor in the bunch. Needless to say, it was pretty disappointing. It is possible we went out at the wrong time but generally, pre-dawn is the best viewing time. Not in 2009.

Some might say it was a complete waste of time and sleep, but even without the meteors there is nothing like laying back in the open space of the desert. The air temp was just right in the high 70’s, the silence relaxes every fiber of your being and there is nothing like being in the company of good friends…getting to know each other on new levels, reminiscing, laughing and just sitting side by side silently sharing the experience.

My dear friend Ron had never seen a meteor shower and I had hoped to bring him out to see it but sadly he passed away just a couple weeks prior. My friend Terese pointed out that Ron was seeing it all from a different view and that he was even closer to it than us. In that moment, we were all united in our hearts as we thought of Ron. He is home with God the creator of all the majesty of the universe. Somehow it all made sense. There are parts of space we get to view regularly and parts that show up now and then to amaze us but there is a place that remains ever elusive, waiting for our arrival. No space craft will take us there and yet we are all destined to go. As I sat next to my long time friend Terese and my two new friends, Ron’s sister and brother, Judy and Jim, looking up , I realized that there is a different kind of space, a space in the heart where friends become family. The Perseids may have fallen short but good friends go the distance.