Diwali is well behind us but on Wednesday, around 3.30 am, the sky will come to life again as meteor showers sparkle in the winter darkness.

It is at this time that the Earth will pass through the debris of comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, and when the comet’s gritty, dusty debris stream comes in contact with the Earth atmosphere, celestial fireworks will follow.

The phenomenon will be visible to the naked eye, for the more enthusiastic stargazers, special camps are being organised.

And if you happen to miss the Wednesday early morning display, smaller meteor showers can be witnessed over the next two days. While on Wednesday around 300 meteors are expected to be visible per hour, in the next two days the number will dwindle to a few.

A meteor shower is caused by the debris of a comet and the one that will light up the country’s skyline is named Leonid, the debris 55P/Tempel-Tuttle comet left more than five hundred years ago in 1466.

The Leonid is an annual phenomenon and occur around November 17. This year, however, the Earth will pass through the centre of the debris leading to the spectacular show. Also the location of the Earth, this year, is such that South Asia will see most of the sparks.

In India, the northern zone will be best placed to watch the action and so the Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators (SPACE), an NGO, is organising skygazing camps on Wednesday at Damdama Lake in Delhi and at two other places in north India.

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