A meteor shower is a celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate, or originate, from one point in the night sky.
How do meteor showers happen?
As a comet travels close to the Sun, it heats up and part of the comet
vaporizes. After a comet has orbited the Sun many times, a lot of small
pieces of the comet are left along the comet's path. A meteor shower
happens when Earth passes through the path of a comet. When this
happens, the bits of comet debris, most no larger than a grain of sand,
create streaks of light in the night sky as they burn up in Earth's
atmosphere. Bits of debris which enter Earth's atmosphere are called
meteors. On any night, there are several small meteors which shoot
across the sky. However, during a meteor shower, tens to hundreds of
meteors can be seen each hour. Many of these meteor showers can be
predicted and occur at the same time each year.
How often do meteor showers happen?
On most nights, an attentive observer might
expect to see between two and ten meteors per hour, depending on
the season and time: more meteors are seen in the
autumn, and rates are highest as dawn approaches.
Meteor showers occur at the same time each year, as Earth
in its annual orbit around the Sun ploughs through streams
of debris. About twenty prominent showers are recognized, varying
in activity from a handful of meteors per hour, to one per
minute or more. Some can even, on occasion, produce
storms in which the sky is filled with meteors for a
short time.
A meteor shower that is expected to happen at the 5th and 6th May of 2014
The meteor shower is a natural phenomenon that is rarely seen by human, maybe because it often occurs late at night. But in my opinion, it is a very beautiful event which should be witnessed by us before we die. I hope to see one someday :)
Have a nice day! :)