The Lyrid meteor shower peaks this weekend

WASHINGTON - Every year, the Lyrid meteor shower occurs in mid to late April. This year's peak activity takes place between Sunday into Monday, with 10-20 meteors expected per hour with viewing lasting through April 29.

With a nearly full moon in the sky during the peak, it might be hard to see clearly.

Here's what to know about the Lyrids and other meteor showers.

Meteor showers happen every year - You don't need special equipment to see them.

Most meteor showers come from the debris of comets and the Lyrids come from the comet Thatcher.

When rocks from space enter Earth's atmosphere, they get very hot due to the air's resistance. This causes the air around them to glow and leaves a fiery tail behind them, giving us the phenomenon of a "shooting star."

The glowing pockets of air created by fast-moving space rocks, ranging in size from a dust particle to a boulder, can be seen in the night sky.

Meteor showers are usually best seen between midnight and predawn hours - no special equipment is necessary.

To see shooting stars more easily, you should go to darker areas away from city lights.

Meteor showers are also brightest on cloudless nights when the moon is at its smallest.

"Look to the northeast and just keep staring at the same spot in the sky" to see the Lyrids, said University of Warwick astronomer Don Pollacco. "It's always impressive when you see these things."

The clearest sighting for the Lyrids is in the Northern Hemisphere, but moonlight will interfere with viewing, according to the American Meteor Society.

Under ideal conditions, "the meteors often appear very bright with bluish trails and often the trails seem to hang around for a few seconds in the sky," said Pollacco.

The meteor society keeps an updated list of upcoming large meteor showers, including the peak viewing days and moonlight conditions.

The Eta Aquarids meteor shower reaches its peak in early May, and it provides the best viewing in the Southern Hemisphere. The shower is caused by debris left behind by Halley's comet.