When to watch the Lyrid meteor shower tonight in the UK

One of the brightest and best meteor showers of the year will be streaking over Britain’s skies in the coming days.

That’s if the full moon doesn’t get in the way too much.

The annual Lyrid meteor shower is already active but will be rising towards a peak before ceasing activity on 30 April.

When is the Lyrid meteor shower?

The Lyrid meteor shower is active between 14 and 30 April, but the peak will come on the 22-23 April.

At the shower’s peak, up to 18 bright, fast meteors per hour are expected.

When are the best nights to see it?

The best time to see the Lyrids is in the early morning of the peak days on 22 and 23 April.

Royal Museums Greenwich advises: "Wait until after midnight when the radiant point, in the constellation of Lyra, will have risen in the East. The later in the morning you wait, the higher the radiant will rise and the fewer meteors will be hidden below the horizon.

"But the closer you get to sunrise the brighter the sky is going to become, so plan accordingly."

Why is it called the Lyrid meteor shower?

According to the Met Office, the Lyrid meteor shower is named as such because it appears to radiate from the constellation Lyra, though it is better to view the Lyrids away from this constellation so they appear longer and more impressive'

The Met Office adds: "Known for their fast, bright meteors, the Lyrids are one of the oldest known meteor showers.’"

How best to watch it in the UK?

There’s no need to take binoculars or a telescope with you, just find a suitably dark area and hope there’s not too much cloud.

You don’t need to go anywhere special to see it from the UK - just go outside and give your eyes half an hour to get used to the dark.

To see it look for the Big Dipper or The Plough (they’re the same thing, but actually they’re the back end of the Great Bear constellation).

Astronomy site Earthrise warns that this year’s shower will compete with a full moon on 23 April, and advises: "Go to a country location where the skies are as dark and clear as possible. Observe under a wide-open sky. But try to place yourself in a moon shadow.

"If you can block out the sight of the moon, yet still have some sky left for seeing meteors, you might see some of the brightest Lyrids blaze past in the bright moonlight."

Why is it unusual?

It’s among the brightest of the regular meteor showers, with a good chance of seeing meteors if you make the effort.

The annual display is caused by the Earth passing through a cloud of debris from a comet called C/186 Thatcher.

Chinese astronomers wrote about the Lyrids in 687BC, writing "at midnight, stars fell like rain".

Astronomy site Earthsky says: “The Lyrids are known for uncommon surges that can sometimes bring the rate up to 100 per hour.

“Those rare outbursts are not easy to predict, but they’re one of the reasons the tantalising Lyrids are worth checking out.”

In the book ‘Observe Meteors’, authors David Levy and Stephen Edberg write, "... of the annual meteor showers, this is the first one that really commands attention, one for which you can organise a shower observing party with a significant chance of success."