Perseid meteor shower sends shooting stars across skies the world over

SINGAPORE - Stargazers and astronomy enthusiasts around the world were treated to shooting stars in the sky on Saturday night and Sunday morning, thanks to the Perseid meteor shower.

Considered one of the world’s brighter meteor showers, a clear display of meteor streaks was spotted in locations including Canada, the Balkans, Britain and Argentina.

The meteor shower, which happens between mid-July and late August, is one of the most spectacular of the year.

Named after the constellation Perseus, this year, it reached its peak over the weekend, from Saturday into Sunday.

However, it is not easy to spot this celestial phenomenon in Singapore due to the “viewing conditions” here, said the Science Centre Observatory.

Meteor showers are formed when the Earth passes through a cloud of debris left behind by a comet or asteroid that has thrown out large amounts of materials.

According to the BBC, the phenomenon brings up to 100 meteors an hour, as the Earth slams into the debris left behind from comet Swift-Tuttle.

These small particles burn up in the atmosphere, leading to blazing trails of light.