Shooting stars will be here to wish upon

Advertiser Staff

Whether it's shooting stars or ones that just stand still, O'ahu residents will have hundreds of reasons to gaze at the heavens tomorrow and Monday.

The Bishop Museum is sponsoring programs at Hanauma Bay to view the annual Perseid meteor showers both nights. Viewers can expect as many as 60 to 70 meteors per hour from midnight to dawn each day.

For those who don't want to stay up late, the Japanese Cultural Center in Mo'ili'ili will hold a star festival tomorrow night 5-9 p.m. at the center, 2454 S. Beretania St.

The Perseids occur each year when the Earth travels through debris left behind by comet Swift-Tuttle. As the debris, the size of rice grains, enters the Earth's atmosphere, it burns up and creates streaks of lights across the sky.

Those interested in attending the museum's free shows are asked to arrive at Hanauma Bay park between 11:30 and 11:55 p.m. tomorrow or Monday. No one will be allowed to enter the park after midnight.

The free event will feature the planetarium's Sam Rhoads and Mike Shanahan providing sky interpretations and constellation identification.

For information, log on to www.bishopmuseum.org or call the museum at 848-4136.

If you don't go to the program, you can watch the star show with the naked eye. Find a place away from lights, and look to the east.

The Japanese Cultural Center's program, "Tanabata: A Star Family Festival," will feature storytelling, music and dance. Food and beverages will be available.

The festival is based on the love story of the Weaving Goddess Orihime and the herdsman Kengyu. Orihime is associated with the star Vega; Kengyu is associated with the star Altair.

The Bishop Museum will present brief sky shows in an inflatable Starlab planetarium from 5 to 7 p.m. Between 7:45 and 9 p.m., the program will move to the center's roof, where staff will identify constellations. The event is free, but donations are welcome. For information, call the center at 945-7633.