Get ready for one of the most dazzling celestial displays of the year—the Perseid meteor shower. Active from mid-July through late August, this year it reaches its spectacular peak on the night of August 12 and into the early hours of August 13. The Perseids light up the skies when Earth passes through a trail of icy and rocky debris left behind by Comet Swift–Tuttle, which last passed close to our planet in 1992. These meteors are called the Perseids because they appear to streak from the direction of the constellation Perseus.
Perseid meteor shower over Nevada
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
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Presidents Day
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Rainbow Mountain
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Sea Otter Awareness Week
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National Take a Hike Day
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Summer’s in home stretch
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Holey moley–it’s National Doughnut Day!
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What s better than a smile?
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Remembering the Arizona
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A unique elephant encounter in Nantes
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Happy International Beaver Day!
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In praise of bogs, swamps, and marshes
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St. Patrick s Day
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Seceda, Dolomites, South Tyrol, Italy
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‘Fringe’ takes center stage as Edinburgh celebrates the arts
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An opulent backdrop for a historic event
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International Tea Day
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Happy birthday, Saguaro National Park
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North Sea at sunset, Norddorf, Germany
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Val Gardena, South Tyrol, Dolomites, Italy
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Sgwd yr Eira waterfall, Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, Wales
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World Laughter Day
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Happy Star Wars Day!
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World Giraffe Day
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Saint Andrews Day
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Behold the perfect cone
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Winter in Old Nuuk
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An ancient sailing tradition takes to the water
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Bowling Ball Beach in Mendocino County, California
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Venture into a prehistoric gallery of art
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

