Perseid meteor shower

A Perseid meteor on the auroral Colorado skies in August of 2000. The picture was taken by Jimmy Westlake, Colorado Mountain College. For more information see NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day.

Once again, it is time for the Perseid meteor showers. On the night between August 12 and 13, it will reach its maximum, which means that there is a high chance of seeing extraordinary many so called shooting stars. The reason for this is that the Earth is passing through the dusty trace of the comet Swift-Tuttle.

The Perseid meteor shower returns about the same time every year. Its name is due to the fact that most meteors seem to originate from an area near the constellation Perseus, which can be found in the north-east direction on the sky this time of the year.

More information on the Perseids can be found at the Sky and Telescope webpage.