Perseid Meteor Shower 2011: Watch Live Video/Audio Feed [VIDEO]

By Laura Matthews | August 12 2011 8:17 PM

The Perseid meteor shower, which is considered one of the best the year, is expected to peak from Aug. 12 into the morning of Aug. 13. But with a full moon washing out all but the brightest meteors, NASA said, rates will probably only be 20 to 30 per hour at most, should the weather permits.

Jimmy Westlake/Colorado Mounta

Just after the Moon set but before the Sun rose in the early morning hours of 2000 August 12, meteors pelted the Earth from the direction of the constellation Perseus, while ions pelted the Earth from the Sun. The meteors were expected as sub-sand grains long left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle annually create the Perseids Meteor Shower.

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If there is clear weather and dark skies, the Perseid meteor shower can be seen by most of the world, but it's best seen by observers in the Northern Hemisphere.

In the Southern Hemisphere, the Perseid radiant doesn't climb very high above the horizon or isn't visible at all, NASA said, and so observers in the Southern Hemisphere will see fewer meteors than those in the opposite side.

Places where the Perseid radiant isn't visible include the southern parts of Australia, Africa, and South America, and all of Antarctica, according to NASA.

But if it is not cloudy, get as far away from bright lights as you can, lay on your back and look up. Put the horizon at the edge of your peripheral vision as you let the sky and stars fill your field of view. Give your eyes some time to adjust to the dark and you should start seeing Perseids. Best of all, no binoculars or telescopes are necessary, NASA said.

NASA will have a live video/audio feed of the Perseid shower. It is embedded below. The camera is mounted at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. During the day, you'll see a dark gray box -- the camera is light-activated and will turn on at dusk each evening. At night you'll see white points, or stars, on a black background. You can also access these links to more sky cameras to have other views of the sky.

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