Meteor showers

The Milky Way and an Eta Aquariid meteor, Park City, Utah, USA. Credit: Nam Do / 500px / Getty Images

Eta Aquariids 2021 How to see this year's meteor shower

Lyrid meteor seen above Schermbeck, Germany. Credit: Mario Hommes/DeFodi Images via Getty Images

Lyrids 2021 How to see this year's meteor shower

A Quadrantid meteor appears in the night sky along with the Milky Way and the Aurora over Banff National Park, Canada, 3 January 2009. Credit: Stocktrek Images / Getty Images

Quadrantids 2021 See the first major meteor shower of 2021

Leave your telescope and binoculars at home. Meteor showers are best spotted with the naked eye. Credit: Isa Terli/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

Ursids 2020 See this year's Christmas meteor shower

The Geminids is one of the most prolific meteor showers of the year. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Geminids 2020 How to see this year's meteor shower

The Leonid meteor shower as seen from Lampang Thailand. Credit: NirutiStock / Getty Images

Leonids 2020 How to see this year's meteor shower

The Orionid meteor shower 2020 radiant is near Betelgeuse and the shower’s peak is on 20/21 October. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Orionids 2020 How to see this year's meteor shower

Stargazers observe the Perseid meteor shower over the Saskatchewan Summer Star Party, Canada, 10 August 2018. Credit: VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Perseids 2020 How to see this year's meteor shower

The radiant is the point from which a meteor shower appears to originate, as seen from Earth. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Meteor showers How to observe and record shooting stars

Best equipment, cameras and mounts for photographing meteor showers. Credit: Pedro Díaz Molins / Getty Images

Astrophotography

Best equipment for photographing meteors 2021

Perseid meteor shower 2020 BBC Sky at Night Magazine live, online, webinar, science, how, see

Perseids 2020 Join our live webinar for expert insight into the year's best meteor shower

A composite image showing multiple Perseid meteors over Big Bend National park, 14 August 2016. Credit: Jason Weingart / Barcroft Media via Getty Images / Barcroft Media via Getty Images

What causes a meteor shower?

Michael Rosinski captured a Perseid display near his home in Michigan, USA, last year. This image was taken with a Canon EOS 70D DSLR camera and 11-16mm lens. Credit: M. Rosinski

Do you need a tracking mount to photograph meteors?

Meteor fireballs over the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile © Wikimedia Commons

Meteor showers Everything you need to know to spot a shooting star

Perseid meteor Luke Hayes, Essex, 11 August 2016. Equipment: digital camera.

Astrophotography

Gallery The Perseid meteor shower in pictures