THE Perseids meteor shower should produce some of the most dramatic skies seen all year around this month.

The shower will be active until August 24, but showing its most impressive scenes between August 12 and 14. 

This occasion is one of the highlights of astronomers’ calendars and will be an opportunity to witness up to 100 shooting stars per hour and the odd fireball if you’re lucky.

The position of the moon this year will make viewing conditions particularly good, so provided the weather remains clear, you could witness some spectacular skies.

Locals will be able to see the meteor shower with the naked eye from anywhere, however, areas with low levels of light pollution such as Exmoor, will provide a better view. 

A meteor shower is an astrological phenomenon which occurs when the Earth’s orbit passes through cosmic debris. 

As comets approach the Sun, they heat up and smaller pieces break off. If these smaller pieces cross into the Earth’s path, they can hurtle through our atmosphere at speeds of up to 45 miles per second. 

As they move through the sky, the smaller meteors vaporise, leaving long stretches of light behind them, creating what we know as ‘shooting stars’. Larger meteors can explode into fireballs, which can be a particularly impressive sight if observed in ideal conditions.

The Perseids meteor shower brightens our skies annually, as the Earth moves through the debris left from the Swift-Tunnel comet. This comet was discovered by Lewis Swift and Horace Parnell Tuttle in 1862 and has a nucleus of approximately 26 kilometres in diameter.

According to NASA, the majority of Perseid meteors that we can see “were ejected from Swift-Tuttle about 1,000 years ago”.

The shower earns its name from the Perseus constellation, where the meteors supposedly originated.

Despite the grandeur of the event, you may not see it unless you plan in advance. 

Checking the weather forecast prior to the night is also crucial, as you will miss all the action if clouds disrupt your view. 

Neill Sanders, founder of Go Stargazing advises to visit “any location with clear, uninterrupted views of skies away from trees and tall buildings”. 

Bill Cooke, leader at the NASA Meteoroid Environments Office, compared meteor sightings in clear, rural areas with those from neighbourhoods. His findings suggested that you could spot over 4 times the number of meteors if you travel to a secluded spot with no light pollution.

Jo Richardson, a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and founder of Space Detectives, emphasises the importance of finding somewhere dark. She says “Exmoor National Park Dark Sky Reserve is ideal, as light pollution levels are strictly controlled”.

Exmoor National Park was labelled an International Dark Sky Reserve in 2011. Bampton, Malmsmead, Luccombe, and Wootton Courtenay are notably good spots for stargazing.

It must be dark for you to witness the meteor shower. Although Neill suggests that 'shooting stars should start becoming visible as soon as darkness falls', the best time to spot the event is 'in the early hours of August 13, around 2 am'.

At this hour, Earth will rotate through the dust cloud left by the Swift-Tuttle comet. Neill says: “These tiny dust fragments enter Earth’s atmosphere and disintegrate, their mass converted into heat and light energy which causes them to appear as streaks across the sky”.

Experts will gather on August 13 at approximately 7 am, as the shower is likely to be most impressive at dawn. However, the darker conditions during the night, between midnight and 3 am will allow a clear view of any meteors that come and go.

Jo advises observers to allow their eyes to “night adapt” in order to see the fainter meteors. She urges stargazers not to look at their phones beforehand and if light is necessary, to use a red light that will not affect night vision.

If you allow your eyes to adjust, Neill says 'your view will naturally be drawn towards' the shooting stars.