If you get a chance, from now until Friday night, there should be some great viewing of the Perseids meteor shower. We are in a New Moon phase as well, so no moonlight pollution. Clear skies should help the cause as well. Just make sure you get outside of the city lights somewhat for the best viewing. The following is a greatexplanation from the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
The Perseids are certainly the best known, if not the most active, meteor shower of the year. The experience of watching them, however, can vary widely. Of course the local weather can make or break a shower viewing, but it's important to keep in mind that the shower occurs not just on the nights of the peak (August 12-13) but for several nights before and after. It's possible to see some Perseids as soon as July 23 and as late as August 24. Another factor is the presence of moonlight; here, prospects for the 2010 shower look favorable indeed, with a New Moon occurring just a couple of days before the peak. The Perseids happen when Earth's orbit around the Sun brings our planet in contact with debris streams left by the periodic comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. The shower profile depends on the location and density of the debris streams - a factor that is beyond our control but increasingly predictable. What IS in our control is the time of night we choose to observe (after midnight is best) and our location (a site with dark skies is preferred). Under ideal conditions this year, the Perseids should be spectacular!
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