"For my part I know nothing with any certainty but the sight of the stars makes me dream."

— Vincent Van Gogh

— Vino

Inspiration from a text! Thank you Susan! I missed a text last night, reminding me to view the meteor shower in the night sky. I will make sure I'm out there tonight! Years ago, I was fortunate enough to watch the Perseid Meteor Shower from the top of a mountain in rural Vermont! Fabulous! 

I taught a workshop yesterday, and when Don McLean's "Starry, Starry Night" rotated onto my music playlist, we all paused to remember dear Vincent Van Gogh. So, it's only fitting with this theme that I should include his famous painting and another quote from him, below! 

Perseid Meteor Shower 2012: Annual 'Shooting Star' Show To Hit Night Sky This Weekend   

The Perseid meteor shower occurs each year in late July and early August when the Earth passes through the dusty remains of the comet Swift-Tuttle. In the night sky, the meteor shower appears to radiate out of the constellation Perseus, hence, its name: Perseid meteor shower.

The Perseid meteor shower occurs each year in late July and early August when the Earth passes through the dusty remains of the comet Swift-Tuttle. In the night sky, the meteor shower appears to radiate out of the constellation Perseus, hence, its name: Perseid meteor shower. 

Great balls of fire!

During your meteor watch you might catch sight of a few outstandingly bright meteors. You may even see a fireball that leaves a long enduring vapor trail lasting for many seconds, or a bolide, which is an exploding meteor whose flight across the sky ends with a silent, strobe-like flash capable of casting a shadow.

Just seeing one of these kinds of meteors can make your whole night worthwhile. 

And below, a couple of unbelievable pictures from the Hubble. If you love these works of art you can get an app for that! I have one simply named "Hubble", there are many to choose from, and some will send you an image a day! They are breathtaking!

So Hold Me, Messier 99, in Your Long ArmsCredit: ESA/Hubble & NASA. Acknowledgement: Matej NovakThursday, July 19, 2012: This Hubble Space Telescope image shows a detailed view of the spiral arms on one side of the galaxy Messier 99. Messier 99 possesses a structure somewhat similar to the Milky Way, with long, large and clearly defined spiral arms. Astronomers refer to such a structure as a grand design spiral. Messier 99 lies around 50 million light-years away in the Virgo Cluster, the closest cluster of galaxies to us.

CatspawCredit: ESO/R. Gendler & R.M. HannahoeWednesday, July 18, 2012: A new photo of the Cat's Paw Nebula combines exposures from the MPG/ESO 2.2-metre telescope of the La Silla Observatory in Chile with 60 hours of exposures made by expert amateur astronomers Robert Gendler and Ryan M. Hannahoe. The additional colour information from Gendler and Hannahoe.brings out the faint blue nebulosity in the central region, not seen in the original ESO image. The Cat’s Paw Nebula (NGC 6334) lies in the constellation of Scorpius (The Scorpion). It is relatively near to Earth, about 5500 light-years away.

And finally, a quote from our dear friend Vincent Van Gogh.

The night is even more richly coloured than the day. . . . If only one pays attention to it, one sees that certain stars are citron yellow, while others have a pink glow or a green, blue and forget-me-not brilliance. And without my expiating on this theme, it should be clear that putting little white dots on a blue-black surface is not enough.

— Vincent van Gogh, letter to sister, September 1888

Happy stargazing!