Barcelona

Las Lágrimas de San Lorenzo 2023

Events
Date: August 11-13

Location: Anywhere in and near Barcelona away from city lights

Do not miss the Perseid meteor shower in Spain. The optimal viewing opportunity for shooting stars in 2023 near Barcelona falls on the nights of August 11th to 13th. Between 10:00 PM and 5:00 AM, the celestial spectacle will grace the sky with approximately 60 shooting stars per minute.

Throughout the 11th to 13th of August, Barcelona will be graced by a waxing gibbous moon, indicating that the moon will shine quite brightly. Consequently, the optimal period for stargazing occurs after the moon has descended, embracing the darkest phase of the night.

In the city of Barcelona, the waxing moon will vanish from the sky around 3:00 AM during the mentioned dates. Consequently, the prime window to witness the shooting stars unfolds between 3:00 AM and 5:00 AM, offering a captivating pre-dawn experience. But most of the time it is impossible to see 'las Lágrimas de San Lorenzo' from a location in the city of Barcelona because of the heavy city light pollution. To see shooting stars near Barcelona you must find a 'dark sky' place outside the city and preferably away from local towns and villages.

The Perseid meteor shower is a celestial event featuring a display of shooting stars, which originates from the remnants left behind by a comet named Comet Swift-Tuttle. This comet holds the distinction of being the largest celestial body that periodically approaches Earth. In Spain, this meteor shower is referred to as the “Lluvia de Meteoros Perseidas” and is affectionately known as the “Las Lágrimas de San Lorenzo” or the “Tears of San Lorenzo.”

This affectionate nickname emerged due to the proximity of the Perseid shooting stars' occurrence to the feast day of Saint Lawrence, observed on the 10th of August. The Perseid shooting stars can be seen all of August, but the best nights to see them are on the 11th and 13th of August. These dates offer the highest concentration of shooting stars, making the experience all the more enchanting.