Skywatchers have been given the chance to share this weekend's display of Perseid meteors with NASA astronomers. The Perseids, which come every August, are normally one of the highlights of the celestial year for amateur astronomers. Under ideal conditions up to 100 shooting stars an hour should be visible when the shower peaks tomorrow. But this year the glare of the full moon will make it difficult to see the fainter meteors.
Tonight NASA is hosting a live web chat beginning at 11pm ET and ending at 5am ET Saturday morning.
Astronomers Bill Cooke, Danielle Moser and Rhiannon Blaauw from the Marshall Space Flight Center will be on hand to talk to stagazers as NASA tries to open the experience up online.
Stargazers will have to contend with a full moon tonight which will hamper viewing. The moon generates natural light pollution that can be equal to that from an illuminated city centre. To help anyone hoping to spot the Perseids, the NASA astronomers will be on hand to offer advice and explain what causes the meteroid shower.
For best viewing, NASA recommends sky watchers look to the darkest parts of the sky. NASA American amateur astronomers to leave the cities as the light pollution combined with the full moon will make visibility very poor.
Viewers will also be able to see the International Space Station, visible as a bright star moving steadily across the sky, which will pass over North America several times each morning this week, and can be seen at different times in almost every part of the U.S. For best viewing, NASA recommends sky watchers check out the darkest parts of the sky. At their best, the Perseids usually let you see one or two shooting stars a minute, and pass in a matter of seconds.
Alan MacRobert, a senior editor of Sky & Telescope magazine told ABC News: 'If you want fireworks, go find a video of fireworks on YouTube. This isn't like that. This is about being part of nature and the wider cosmos. 'Most people never look up. They go about their busy little lives wrapped up in their busy little concerns here on the ground like ants in an anthill. 'Amateur astronomers - and nature people in general - are people who sometimes stop to look up, and to take the time to find out about what they see.'
The meteor shower is named Perseid because they point where they come from - the constellation Perseus. The Perseids are grains of dust shed from the tail of Comet Swift-Tuttle burning up in the atmosphere. Every year in August the Earth ploughs through a cloud of the dust as it orbits the sun.
Alastair McBeath, director of the Society for Popular Astronomy's meteor section, said: 'As Perseid meteors near the peak are usually bright to occasionally very bright, this should mean observing will be quite rewarding despite the loss of fainter meteors to the moonlight.'
Dr Marek Kukula, public astronomer at the Greenwich Royal Observatory in London, said: 'The Perseids are always an exciting meteor shower to watch out for. 'Even in large cities it's often possible to catch site of some of the brighter Perseid meteors streaking across the sky, but from a really dark site you can sometimes see dozens per hour. 'The meteors can appear anywhere in the sky so try looking away from the bright moon to maximise your chances of seeing one.'