Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks Aug. 11 and 12 with a Possible Strong Outburst!

The annual Perseid meteor shower peaks this year on Aug. 11 and 12, with the best viewing after local midnight. The shower is one of the very best of the year, with 60 or more shooting stars visible every hour. I have a viewing guide below, but first there's some unusual news: The shower may have a rare outburst, a big uptick in activity, this year! The Perseids are debris from the comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the Sun every 133 years. When it gets close to the Sun, the heat from our star tur...