Lyrid Meteor Shower to Peak

The Lyrid meteor shower should be at its best on the nights of April 20 and 21.  Because of the new moon, conditions will be perfect for viewing, and a peak of a dozen or so meteors per hour may be expected.

The Lyrids are pieces of debris from the periodic Comet C/1861 G1Thatcher and have been observed for more than 2,600 years.  Earth runs into the stream of debris from the comet in mid-April of each year.  The Lyrids are named as such because they appear to originate from a point in the constellation Lyra.

See stardate.org and nasa.gov for more information.