Cosmic triple-header converging as solar eclipse, Perseids and planetary parade align in one day

Swaths of Greenland, Iceland and Spain will be treated to a cosmic triple-whammy Wednesday as three celestial phenomena converge in a rare display that could both brighten and darken the Atlantic sky.A total solar eclipse, a planetary parade and the Perseid meteor shower’s peak will all be visible on the same day across a 180-mile-wide corridor stretching from northeast Greenland, to the western reaches of Iceland and almost straight across Spain.The phenomenon will also be visible to anybody floating across swaths of the Atlantic Ocean and even an uninhabited region of Russia.Lucky stargazers located in those places will be in for a cosmic treat, as the total solar eclipse — when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun — will blot out our star’s light and darken the day into twilight.At the same time, the Perseid meteor shower — a multi-day display of shooting stars caused each year by the Earth passing through Comet Swift-Tuttle’s debris stream — will reach its height Wednesday, right as the eclipse totality moves across the Atlantic region.That means eclipse viewers may be able to see shooting stars falling in daylight — normally all but impossible because of the brightness of the sky, but enabled by the false twilight cast by the moon blocking out the sun.The Perseids are generally considered the best meteor shower each year, with nighttime viewers typically able to see between 50 and 100 meteors per hour in clear skies.That many won’t be visible during the eclipse totality — since nighttime darkness isn’t achieved — but lucky viewers may still catch a few, and maybe even one of the shower’s characteristic fireball meteors known for lingering in the sky with huge streaks of color.And for dedicated astronomy buffs, the whole day’s show will kick off with a planetary parade — which happens when numerous planets become visible from Earth and appear to align across the sky.Wednesday’s planetary parade will include six planets �...