Perseid meteor showers?

Question

I was out watching the meteors the other night. It was fascinating. I'm just curious though, the ones I saw didn't "streak" across the sky. Rather, they moved slowly. Do meteors actually do that? Sounds silly, I know...

Answer 1

There are fireballs that move fairly slowly across the sky.  They're quite rare.

And yet, when i was a little kid, that's what i saw first.  I had no idea what a shooting star looked like.  I've seen a couple slow ones like that since. They typically leave a smoke trail.  Fast meteors can leave a trail too.  But it really sounds as if you've seen a satellite.

There's a great web site that lets you see the International Space Station, Iridium flares, and other satellites.  You should register, so the the software knows where you are on Earth.  It's free.

You could see a Perseid meteor this early.  The peak is the 12th.

Answer 2

No, they do streak across the sky.  You probably saw some satelites too.  

http://www.imo.net/calendar/2008

2008 Calendar from the International Meteor Organization.  

Best place to watch is a dark sky location.  Their home page has all the information that you need on the subject.  

When 2009 gets here just change the 8 to a 9 in the address.  Enjoy!