One of the best meteor showers of the year will peak during the middle of this week.

What You Need To Know

  • The Perseid meteor shower peaks August 11-12

  • There's a potential for fireballs

  • There will be an average of 50 to 100 meteors per hour

  • The best viewing time will be after midnight and away from city lights

Get ready to look up in the night sky this week as meteors will be flying through the sky.

The Perseid meteor shower originates from the 109P/Swift-Tuttle comet and comes around every year. Believe it or not, it takes 133 years to orbit around the sun!

When to look

The Perseid meteor shower will peak on August 11 into the morning of the 12th.

The best time to view it will be after midnight and just before dawn.

Where to look and what to do

You will want to look in the northeastern sky toward the constellations Cassiopeia and Perseus.

It is important to give your eyes several minutes to adjust to the darkness. Also, get away from city lights that will make it more difficult to see the meteors.

Have patience! Give yourself some time to see the meteors, at least an hour since they are sporadic. Grab a lawn chair or a blanket since you'll be outside for a while.

Another thing going for us this year is the moon will just come out of a new moon phase, with only 17% of it visible. Therefore, we will likely be able to see more meteors due to less light pollution.

Fun facts

  • The meteors can travel as fast as 37 miles a second! 
  • The Perseids are famous for fireballs and long trailing streaks.
  • If a meteor hits the ground, it is called a meteorite. 

For a look at the rest of the year's celestial events, check out this calendar here.