A METEOR SHOWER is due over Irish skies on Thursday night as the Earth passes through debris left in the wake of a comet.
The Perseid meteor shower, as it's known, will be visible late on Thursday and into the early hours of Friday morning, when the sky is at its darkest.
It'll be visible to the human eye and those watching out do not necessarily need telescopes, binoculars or any other special equipment.
There'll be patches of clouds as well as clear spells throughout the night in Ireland, with some showers in the west and north according to forecasters, but if the weather holds, we're in for a treat.
It's one of the most vibrant annual showers due to the brightness and frequency with which the debris comes crashing into the Earth's atmosphere.
Dr Robert Massey, deputy executive director of the Royal Astronomical Society, said: "The light of the moon won’t interfere with the shower, so you stand a much better chance of seeing more meteors.
"If there is a full moon in the sky, then you might as well be in the city because it will light up the whole sky but this year the moon really will help us see more Perseid meteors."
We can count ourselves lucky as the shower, which will be visible all over the world, will be best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, according to the UK's Royal Astronomical Society.
The comet that causes the Perseids is known as Comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun every 133 years. It last had its closest approach to the sun in 1992.
