One of the year’s most prolific meteor showers to light up the night sky this weekend

The Leonid meteor shower is visible across the UK throughout November, with its peak expected on the night of 17 November. The display could offer 10 to 15 meteors an hour, and the particles create some of the fastest streaks of light seen in the sky.

The meteors come from debris left by Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, entering the atmosphere at up to 71 kilometres per second. They can be seen without equipment from a dark, open spot after allowing 20 to 30 minutes for eyes to adjust; clouds and fog may disrupt viewing this weekend, though conditions could improve around the peak.