LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Heads up, skywatchers! Grab a lawn chair and get away from the city lights because one of the best shooting star displays of the year is happening on Sunday.
The Perseid meteor shower is active now and peaks this weekend.
Here's everything you need to know.
What is it?
A meteor shower occurs when the Earth moves through fields of debris floating around in space.
The Perseids occur every year in the late summer.
What you're really seeing in the sky here on Earth are pieces of comet debris that heat up as they enter the atmosphere. Those pieces then burn up in a bright burst of light and paint streaks across the sky at an incredible rate of 37 miles per second.
Fun fact! While in space - these tiny pieces of debris are known as meteoroids, then when those particles reach Earth’s atmosphere they are called meteors and create the “shooting star” appearance. A fragment that makes it all the way down to the ground would be called a meteorite, though that is very uncommon.
When can I see it?
You'll want to get as far away from the city lights as you can and look up into the sky during the pre-dawn hours Sunday morning.
As long as the sky is clear, you'll be able to spot roughly, 100 meteors that will pass through the sky every hour.
The best part is, you won't need any special equipment to see the Perseids. Just give your eyes about a half hour to adjust to the dark and don't look at your cell phone or the moon as that will make it harder to see what's happening.
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