The Perseid Meteor Shower

One of the two best displays of “shooting stars” all year is The Perseid Meteor Shower. 

These meteors are caused when little bits of dust shed by Comet Swift-Tuttle slam into our atmosphere at 37 miles per second. Every August, we cross the comet’s orbit and plow right through this dusty debris. 

You don’t need any special equipment to enjoy the Perseids, and so this annual sky show makes a wonderful activity for your whole family. On a normal year you can expect to see up to 100 meteors per hour at the shower's peak, according to NASA. 

This year, the peak of the shower will be seen on August 11-12th (generally between 2 and 5 am, looking to the northeast).