Halley's Comet Debris: Peak 2016 Orionids Meteor Shower Visible Tonight

Expect to be dazzled Thursday night when the Orionids meteor shower hits its peak, with up to 20 "shooting stars" streaking across the skies.

The Orionids stem from debris from Halley's Comet, which last passed by Earth in 1986 and will return in 2061. As Comet Halley moves through space, it leaves debris in its wake that strikes Earth’s atmosphere most fully around Oct. 20-22 every year as we pass through the comet's orbit.

The glare of a waning gibbous moon in the early morning hours just before sunrise could intrude with the Orionids, which typically produce 10 to 20 meteors per hour. Most meteors in this shower tend to fall after midnight, and they’re typically at their best in the wee hours just before dawn. The Orionids also sometimes present bright fireballs.

The peak comes the night of Oct. 20 into the early morning hours of Friday, Oct. 21, but will probably be most prolific in the few hours before dawn on Oct. 21. As is standard for most meteor showers, the best time to watch this shower will be between the hours of midnight and dawn – regardless of your time zone, says EarthSky.org.

The Slooh website says it will have a live stream of the meteor shower starting at 8 p.m. ET, and its astronomers will be on to explain the celestial show.

The key to seeing a meteor shower is to go to a dark area, in the suburbs or countryside, and prepare to sit outside for a few hours. It takes about 30 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark, and the longer you wait outside, the more you'll see, NASA meteor expert Bill Cooke says.

Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland and Florida will have partly cloudy skies Thursday, so there's a good chance of spotting meteors, and California should have clear skies. Meanwhile, Atlanta, New York City, New Jersey and Massachusetts should expect a chance of rain and cloudy skies, and Chicago's view will be hampered by mostly cloudy skies, says the National Weather Service.

»MORE ABOUT METEOR SHOWERS: Patch’s Complete 2016 Meteor Shower Guide

Fall/Winter 2016 Meteor Showers

Nov. 4-5, South Taurids
Though the best viewing conditions are likely to be after midnight on Nov. 5, the Taurids are very long-lasting, from Sept. 25-Nov. 25. They only offer about seven meteors an hour, but the Taurids are known for having a high percentage of fireballs. This is the first of two Taurid meteor showers, and it always adds a few more meteors to the South Taurids’ peak night.

Nov. 11-12, North Taurids
This shower is long-lasting, too, from Oct. 12-Dec. 2, but modest as well with only about seven meteors an hour, with most of the activity taking place around midnight. The meteors are slow moving, but very bright. The waxing gibbous moon could outshine this year’s shower.

Nov. 16-17, Leonids
Some of the greatest meteor storms in history have been associated with this event, which can produce rates of thousands of meteors per minute during a span of 15 minutes, as occurred on Nov. 17, 1966. “ Some who witnessed the 1966 Leonid meteor storm said they felt as if they needed to grip the ground, so strong was the impression of Earth plowing along through space, fording the meteoroid stream,” earthsky.org says.

Dec.13-14, Geminids
The last meteor shower of the year is usually one of the finest meteor showers visible in either the Northern or the Southern Hemisphere, but a full moon will be out all night, subduing the typically prolific Geminids, which can produce up to 120 meteors per hour. The shower peaks around 2 a.m.

Dec. 21-22, Ursids
This minor meteor shower often goes unnoticed. Produced by the dust grains left behind by the comet Tuttle, it produces only about five to 10 meteors an hour. The shower runs from Dec. 17-25, but it should peak around Dec. 21. The moon will be 23 days old at the time of peak activity, so it shouldn’t present too much of a problem.

— Patch Editor Beth Dalbey contributed to this story

»Image: Fred Bruenjes/NASA