🍷Meteor Shower Fireball Drinks & Stargazing In Park With Telescopes FREE

Ever looked up to the stars and marvelled with insatiable curiosity at the wonder of the universe - our place in it, where did we come from, how insignificant we are, how life began on our planet, what else is out there and where in the cosmos other civilizations might live nearby?

Well Tonight will be the peak and hence best night of the year to watch something I have been doing ever year since I was 11 - the Perseid meteor shower - with up to 100 shooting stars an hour! And so what better way to spend it than sipping a bottle of red pinot noir and watch it rain fire in the sky. Unfortunately we can't be in Rocky Moutain Highs but the next best thing - my favourite park in Islington - the cosy but residential Highbury Feilds. This year this will be a semi full moon so many asteriod particles will be invisible in the glare so set your expectations realistically.

I'll be bringing my telescope so there will also be an opportunity for some celestial viewing including sights of the breathtaking rings of Saturn, the expected life harboring moons of Jupiter, the red planet (what could I possibly be refering to?!?), Neptune, binary star systems, Andromedia galaxy and star clusters (unfortunately international space station not due this night) over drinks, conversation and laughter this August.

If you have your own telescope feel free to bring it along and if you don't know how to use/you're a newbie I can help you set it up.

In between observing and waiting for meteors to streak across the sky, we'll have having engaging chats over a a drink on all astronomy/cosmology/astrobiology related themes as well as non space topics and banter for variety. No doubt you'll hear the usual space jokes heard hundreds of times before! And if you bribe me with a drink (I like whisky, French martini, Guniness, white/red wine & dark rum!) I'll do my impersonation of ET or even sing some space related songs (I may bring my guitar if I can carry it all), feel free to bring your musical instruments.

Please bring your own drinks and food/snacks, something to sit on (though there will be benches) but make sure to clean up after yourself.

====ITINERARY=====
Meet outside Highbury & Islington station at 8.30PM where I will brief everyone and escort everyone to the observation point. Also given I am not doing this with my regular astronomers group (though I will try to get one of my astronomer friends to bring a telescope - you reading Peter?) I have to put a cap on numbers.

===Weather=====
If the weather changes during course of the evening - we will go to one of the many Pubs on either Upper Street or Highbur Barn - both 5 mins walk away. The event is subject to clear skies on the night so if on the actual day of the event the weather conditions are confirmed unsuitable beyond doubt then we may meet anyway for some cosmology chat and socializing. But as long as the event is still advertised here, it will be going ahead at designated time!

Happy Meteor Hunting!

Lucas Skywalker (Amateur Astronomer)