On paper the prospects for this year’s Perseid shower were on the face of it as good as it gets for our society: no moonlight to interfere, a summer of seemingly endless clear nights, and for us the timing was perfect for the Regatta star parties.

Well, on paper many things look great, but when events depend on the weather, never count on anything. Actually late Friday / early Saturday morning, skies were crystal clear, and anyone looking out in the wee hours would have spotted some Perseids, as Mark did. 

From the fairly short period spent watching, and from a restricted viewing aspect, the Plough/Ursa Major region, four were spotted in 20 minutes, corresponding to estimated zenith hourly rates of perhaps 25-35, not bad for a pre-peak date. Then the weather intervened and both Saturday and Sunday nights turned cloudy with rain, not even a sniff of a Perseid! Well it was regatta!