Perseid meteor shower: When and how to watch

The spectacle is set to peak this weekend, reaching its height on Sunday night into Monday morning.

The Perseids pass through our atmosphere every year when the Earth orbits through debris left by the Swift-Tuttle comet.

Experts say the best chance to spot a meteor begins just after midnight and ends about an hour before sunrise, but it is worth checking the weather where you are.

BBC weather forecasters say viewing conditions are expected to be especially good on the east side of the UK.

What is the Perseid meteor shower?

The Perseid meteors are visible all around the world and are so-called because they appear to originate from within the constellation Perseus.

While on most nights the shower will only showcase a few meteors each hour, the peak of the Perseids can bring many, many more.

If you're really lucky, you could see 100 or more meteors per hour, scientists say.

We see meteors when the Earth passes through trails of debris from comets or asteroids. As that debris hits our planet's atmosphere, it burns up and creates spectacular streaks of light.

The Perseids - pronounced 'Per-see-ids' - are caused by debris left behind by the Swift-Tuttle comet.

Dr Gregory Brown, Senior Public Astronomy Officer at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, said that the Perseids is one of the fastest meteor showers.

"They travel up to 37 miles per second, but they are about the size of specks of paint or grains of sand falling into the atmosphere," he said.

"While that does cause this rather brilliant light show, they've absolutely no chance of hitting the ground. And even if they did, they’re these tiny little things so they wouldn't cause any harm."

How should I watch the meteor shower?

Try to get to the darkest location you can with an unobstructed view of the sky.

The darker it is where you are, the better chance you'll have of seeing meteors streaking across the sky.

“Fill your view with as much of the sky as you possibly can, lying down or using a deck chair and then just wait and allow your eyes to adapt to the dark and eventually, fingers crossed, if it's nice and clear and you're watching for an hour or so, you should at least be able to catch a handful," said Dr Brown.

Where in the UK is best to watch it?

Looking ahead to find the best place to see the spectacle, BBC weather forecasters say the better night more widely could be Monday into Tuesday.

While clear spells are expected for most on Sunday, the amount of cloud could increase in the west of Britain and Northern Ireland, they say.

"Sunday night is looking warm and humid in the south with the threat of thunderstorms and some torrential downpours in the north and west," BBC forecaster Elizabeth Rizzini said.

"The clearest skies will be in eastern Scotland as well as most of England and Wales for the first half of the night.

"It will be clearer in eastern Scotland and southern England for the second half of the night."

BBC weather forecaster Billy Payne said Tuesday night will see "good clear skies" in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

There may be some some rain and areas of cloud with "clear spells in between" in the south and east of England, he said.

"Parts of north and the west of England are likely to be stuck under a front, meaning limited viewing potential for many," he said.

-BBC