WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Astronomers predict a dazzling display of meteor shower over North America for hours beginning Monday night.
On the night of May 30 into the early morning of May 31, Earth will pass through the debris trails of a broken comet called 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann, or SW3, NASA says.
If the fragments from the Comet were ejected with speeds greater than twice the normal speeds - fast enough to reach Earth - we might get a meteor shower, according to the US space agency.
Spitzer observations published in 2009 indicate that at least some fragments are moving fast enough. This is one reason why astronomers are excited about a meteor shower.
Observers in North America under clear, dark skies have the best chance of seeing a tau Herculid shower, as per NASA. The peak time to watch is around 1 AM on the East Coast or 10 PM on the West Coast.
It is expected to be the most brightest meteor shower in years, creating a 'meteor storm' of 1,000 shooting stars per hour, accoridng to a section of astronomers.
However, NASA reminds skywatchers who get excited about meteor showers that sometimes events like this don't live up to expectations, as it happened with the 2019 Alpha Monocerotid shower.
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