Science & Medicine

Perseid meteor shower

Stargazers on a tour with California Overland Desert relax on a dry lake bed in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and watch astronomer writer and photographer Dennis Mammana use a green lazer to point out objects in the night sky.

Stargazers on a tour with California Overland Desert relax on a dry lake bed in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and watch astronomer writer and photographer Dennis Mammana use a green lazer to point out objects in the night sky.  (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

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The Perseid meteor shower occurs every August when Earth passes through debris and dust of the Swift-Tuttle comet.

Bogushevichi, Belarus

A Catholic church is seen on a time-exposure during the Perseid meteor shower near the village of Bogushevichi in Belarus.  (TATYANA ZENKOVICH / EPA)

Yangon, Myanmar

A time-exposure photograph of people watching for the Perseid meteor shower in the night sky near Yangon.   (YE AUNG THU / AFP/Getty Images)

Stobi, Macedonia

A shooting star streaks across the sky over the archaeological site Stobi in Macedonia.  (GEORGI LICOVSKI / EPA)

Paju, South Korea

A 15-minute exposure shows stars and meteors during the Perseid meteor shower in Imjingak Pyeonghwa-Nuri park in Paju, South Korea.  (KIM JAE-SUN / EPA)

Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

Stargazers on a tour with California Overland Desert Excursions watch the night sky above Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in Southern California as a meteor streaks by during the annual Perseid meteor shower.   (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)

Madrid, Spain

A multiple-exposure image shows the Perseid meteor shower lighting the sky near La Hiruela, on the mountains of the Sierra Norte de Madrid.   (Dani Pozo / AFP/Getty Images)

Landers, Calif.

A Perseid meteor streaks across the sky over the Mojave Desert in Landers.  (Paul Buck / EPA)

Villarejo de Salvanes, Spain

Stars seen as streaks from a long camera exposure are seen behind and above a roadside silhouette of a Spanish fighting bull in Villarejo de Salvanes, central Spain.  (Paul White / Associated Press)

Sieversdorf, Germany

A shooting star illuminates the night sky near Sieversdorf, Germany.  (Patrick Pleul / EPA)

Salgotarjan, Hungary

A shooting star of the Perseid meteor shower burns up in the atmosphere near Salgotarjan, northeast of Budapest.  (Peter Komka / EPA)

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