If you never had the chance to see the sky light up at night, here is your chance!

The next meteor shower is the Perseids on August 12, 2009. The shower peaks early afternoon on the 12th, so the morning of the 12th (midnight to dawn) and late evening are the best times to watch from the U.S.

Note: Bright moonlight makes it difficult to see all but the brightest meteors.

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The best way to view a meteor shower

If you live near a brightly lit city, drive away from the glow of city lights and toward the constellation from which the meteors will appear to radiate.

Driving south may lead you to darker skies, but the glow will dominate the northern horizon, where Leo rises. Perseid meteors will appear to “rain” into the atmosphere from the constellation Perseus, which rises in the northeast around 11 p.m. in mid-August.

“The Perseid shower is the most popular meteor shower of the year because it’s at the best time of year (summer) and it has some of the highest hourly rates of any annual shower,” said Dr. Peter Bias, an economics teacher at Florida Southern College in Lakeland and avid meteor shower observer.

Meteors can be seen as early as 10 p.m. (today) but not very many. This year the maximum should occur on the morning of Aug. 12, so evening meteors can be seen on Aug. 11 or Aug. 12 because the shower actually lasts for about two days at high strength.