Leonid Meteor Shower November 2009

The Leonid meteor shower is on full display tonight after midnight EST, so be ready to see some amazing meteor action in the skies over North America!

While the Leonid meteor shower typically lasts from November 13 to 20, tonight is pegged as the peak of the annual meteor shower, and skywatchers anticipate ideal viewing conditions with the clear forcast and the fact that it's a new moon.

Watchers can see the spectacle of debris and dust particles from Comet Tempel-Tuttle hitting our atmosphere at 20 to 30 meteors per hour as the particles collide with our atmosphere at about 238,000 kilometers an hour causing friction with the air and creating the incredible streaks of light we sometimes mistakenly call shooting stars.

For best meteor shower viewing, get yourself to a rural area with little light pollution is low between 1:30am and sunrise - no need for telescopes or binoculars - the Leonid meteors can be seen with the naked eye!