‘Best meteor shower of year’ peaks this week. You may see 100 per hour — and fireballs

In this 30-second exposure taken with a circular fish-eye lens, a meteor streaks across the sky during the annual Perseid meteor shower on Friday, Aug. 12, 2016, in Spruce Knob, West Virginia. Bill Ingalls, NASA
BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — You could see up to 100 meteors an hour and bright fireballs light up the sky this week.
The Perseids meteor shower is expected to peak on the mornings of Aug. 11-13, according to EarthSky. NASA said it’s the “best meteor shower of the year.”
“With very fast and bright meteors, Perseids frequently leave long ‘wakes’ of light and color behind them as they streak through Earth’s atmosphere,” NASA said. “The Perseids are one of the most plentiful showers.”
The shower is known for its fireballs, according to NASA. The sky could be lit up by explosions of light that last longer and are brighter than a typical meteor streak.
“With clear skies, you could see what some consider the most spectacular cosmic light show,” Space.com reported.
The meteors come from comet particles and asteroids. When Earth passes through the debris trail, people can see the small space rocks appearing as shooting stars when they collide with the planet’s atmosphere, NASA said.
This year is a great year to view the meteor shower because there won’t be a lot of moonlight ruining the show, according to EarthSky.
The best time to catch a glimpse of the Perseids is in the “pre-dawn hours,” NASA said. You could see meteors at any time of night and as early as 10 p.m.
It’s best to go to the darkest place, and sit or lay where you can see as much sky as possible, according to Space.com.
“Prepare to sit outside for a few hours,” Space.com reported. “It takes about 30 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark, and the longer you wait outside, the more you’ll see.”
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