matthen:

Why is it always better to look for shooting stars just before dawn? This shows a simulation of the Earth going on its orbit around the Sun, and encountering the debris from a comet that has passed by. This is precisely what the Earth has been doing for the past couple of days, creating the Perseid meteor shower. The A.M. half of the Earth is at the front of the orbit, and like a car’s front wind shield it picks up a lot of the debris. Have a look out for meteors again tonight! [code] [more]