Don't Miss the Lyrid Meteor Shower Peak This Weekend!

The peak of the Lyrids meteor shower, one of the oldest known meteor showers, will be visible to sky watchers in the Northern Hemisphere away from excessive artificial light and cloudy weather this weekend. The Lyrid meteors are space debris from Comet Thatcher, and as the Earth passes through Thatcher's debris trail, particles and bits of asteroids collide with the planet's atmosphere and burn up, producing colorful streaks in the sky. Spectators should be able to see between 10 to 20 Lyrid meteors per hour, with the meteors appearing to originate from the constellation Lyra.