For your viewing pleasure: Perseid meteor shower
Occurring every August when the Earth passes through the debris and dust of the Swift-Tuttle comet, a look at the Perseid meteor shower.
- A shooting star can be seen in the night sky over Sieversdorf, eastern Germany, on August 11, 2013. The peak of the Perseid meteor shower is expected for the night to Tuesday, August 13, 2013. (Patrick Pleul/AFP/Getty Images)
- A Perseid meteor streaks across the sky over the Lovell Radio Telescope at Jodrell Bank on August 13, 2013 in Holmes Chapel, United Kingdom.The annual display, known as the Perseid shower because the meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus in the northeastern sky, is a result of Earth’s orbit passing through debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
- Perseid meteors streak across the sky on August 12, 2013 in Cathedral Gorge State Park, Nevada. The annual display, known as the Perseid shower because the meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus in the northeastern sky, is a result of Earth’s orbit passing through debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
- A long exposure image showing a Perseids meteor (L) streaking across the night sky over St. Ioan medieval church near the village of Potsurnentsi, late on August 12, 2013. The Perseid meteor shower occurs every year in August when the Earth passes through the debris and dust of the Swift-Tuttle comet. (Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP/Getty Images)
- A long exposure image showing a Perseids meteor (L) streaking across the night sky over St. Ioan medieval church near the village of Potsurnentsi, late on August 12, 2013. The Perseid meteor shower occurs every year in August when the Earth passes through the debris and dust of the Swift-Tuttle comet. (Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP/Getty Images)
- This long-exposure photograph taken on August 12, 2013 shows people watching for the Perseid meteor shower in the night sky near Yangon. The meteor shower occurs every year in August when the Earth passes through the debris and dust of the Swift-Tuttle comet. (Ye Aung Thu/AFP/Getty Images)
- A multiple exposure picture taken in the early hours of August 11, 2013 shows a Perseids meteor shower in the sky, near the municipality of La Hiruela, on the mountains of the Sierra Norte de Madrid. (Dani Pozo/AFP/Getty Images)
- A multiple exposure picture taken in the early hours of August 11, 2013 shows a Perseids meteor shower in the sky, near the municipality of La Hiruela, on the mountains of the Sierra Norte de Madrid. (Dani Pozo/AFP/Getty Images)
- A general view of Stonehenge during the annual Perseid meteor shower in the night sky in Salisbury Plain, southern England August 13, 2013. The Perseid meteor shower is sparked every August when the Earth passes through a stream of space debris left by comet Swift-Tuttle. Picture taken using a long exposure. (Kieran Doherty/Reuters)
- A meteor streaks over the northern skies during the Perseid meteor shower at Stobi archeological site, which was the largest city in the northern part of the Roman province Macedonia and later capital city of the Roman province Macedonia Secunda, early August 13, 2013. According to NASA, the annual Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak on August 12 and 13 in Europe. The fireballs from the meteorites are fast and plentiful, the agency adds, with as many as 100 visible in a single hour. (Ognen Teofilovski/Reuters)
- A long exposure shot shows a plane flying over the sea during a lightning storm on the last day of the annual Perseid meteor shower, near the popular tourist destination of Cancun, August 12, 2013. Picture taken August 12, 2013. (Victor Ruiz Garcia/Reuters)
- (L-R) Los Angeles photographers Shawn Kaye, Scott Meadows and Steve Gentry set their cameras pointed to the stars during the Perseid meteor shower early on Monday morning north of Castaic Lake, California August 12, 2013. According to NASA, the Perseid meteor shower, which is an annual event, reaches its peak on August 11 and 12. The fireballs from the meteorites are fast and plentiful, the agency adds, with as many as 100 visible in a single hour. (Gene Blevins/Reuters)
- A meteor streaks over the North Star in the northern skies during the Perseid meteor shower early on Monday morning north of Castaic Lake, California August 12, 2013. According to NASA, the Perseid meteor shower, which is an annual event, reaches its peak on August 11 and 12. The fireballs from the meteorites are fast and plentiful, the agency adds, with as many as 100 visible in a single hour. (Gene Blevins/ReuterS)
- Stargazers come out to watch the Perseid meteor shower early on Monday morning north of Castaic Lake, California August 12, 2013. According to NASA, the Perseid meteor shower, which is an annual event, reaches its peak on August 11 and 12. The fireballs from the meteorites are fast and plentiful, the agency adds, with as many as 100 visible in a single hour. (Gene Blevins/Reuters)