The Kansas Wetlands Education Center will host its annual end-of-summer Perseid Meteor Shower Watch Party on Friday, Aug. 13, from 8:30-10:30 p.m. The Wetlands Center is located 10 miles northeast of Great Bend along K-156 at Cheyenne Bottoms.

Each August, Earth passes through a stream of dust and debris left behind by the Swift-Tuttle Comet, lighting up the sky with shooting stars.

Join KWEC staff for this free, family-friendly event full of crafts, experiments, night hikes and games. 

This year’s environmental conditions are setting up to be perfect, sponsors said. The moon sets early this year, producing a dark sky, and the party date falls on a peak day, which could produce over 150 shooting star sightings per hour. 

The Fort Hays State University Science and Mathematics Education Institute’s inflatable planetarium will be available for shows with guaranteed star-viewing. Visitors are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets to enjoy s’mores while they kick back and enjoy the night sky.

For more information, visit the KWEC website, wetlandscenter.fhsu.edu, or call 877-243-9268.