The Perseid meteor shower will peak late Sunday night, which could provide a spectacular sight for stargazers, given that the moon will set early and the sky will be dark.
The Perseid meteor shower is best seen between midnight and dawn, NASA said on its website, adding that meteors are most likely to be seen just before dawn when the radiant point is high in the sky. However, that doesn’t mean skywatchers should stare at the radiant point, as meteors can be seen from anywhere in the sky.
The annual meteor shower has been active since July and is considered one of the brightest and most easily visible meteor showers of the year, producing “a huge number of bright blue meteors,” according to astronomer Don Polacco of the University of Warwick.
This meteor shower occurs annually as Earth passes through the remains of the Comet Swift-Tuttle.
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This photo shows the Perseid meteor shower appearing in China’s night sky on August 13, 2021. (Liang Zheng/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Most nights during the Perseids, only a few meteors per hour are visible, but during the peak of the meteor shower, many more are usually visible. The number varies from year to year, but NASA says you could see anywhere from a few dozen meteors per hour, up to as many as 200.
The 53% waxing crescent moon will set just after 10:30 p.m., but in areas with no light pollution and clear skies, you might be able to see a fair few meteors throughout the night.
To get the most out of the meteor shower, NASA encourages skywatchers to get out of town and find the darkest spot possible.
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On July 26, 2023, NASA’s Pan-Sky Fireball Network detected the first Perseid meteor of the year. (NASA/Global Fireball Network)
NASA also recommends checking the weather forecast before heading out to find out where fog or clouds may affect the views.
Still, when conditions are right, budding astronomers can spot up to 50 meteors per hour, according to the American Meteor Society, and the best part is that no special equipment is required to spot them.
When a space rock enters Earth’s atmosphere, the resistance of the air heats it up so much that it causes the air around the rock to glow, leaving a fiery tail behind it that makes the space rock look like a shooting star and can even be seen with the naked eye in the night sky.
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On August 17, 2020, the Perseid meteor shower was observed over China. (Costfoto/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
But because the Perseids are made up of larger particles than other meteor showers, their shooting stars look like bright fireballs and are easier to spot than other meteor showers, said NASA’s Bill Cook.
The Perseid meteor shower is often considered the most spectacular meteor shower of the year due to the high chance of meteors appearing and the pleasant weather conditions.
It is also the only meteor shower to have delayed a Space Shuttle launch (STS-51 in 1993).
Meteor showers are most commonly seen in the Northern Hemisphere.
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The Perseid meteor shower appears to radiate from a single point in the constellation Perseus, and is named after the location where it originates.
“All you need to see the show is clear skies, darkness and a little patience. There’s no need to look in a specific direction; meteors can typically be seen across the entire sky,” NASA said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.