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The Lyrid meteors occur annually right around April 21st to the 23rd. A moderate meteor shower, observers in the northern hemisphere can expect to see about 20 meteors in the early morning hours under optimal conditions. Such has been the case for recent years past, and this year’s presence of a waxing gibbous Moon has lowered prospects for this April shower considerably in 2013. But this has not always been the case with this meteor stream. In fact, we have records of the Lyrids stretching back over the past 2,600 years, farther back than any other meteor shower documented. The...

Lyrid meteors to grace the weekend sky 07:11 20 April 2007 NewScientist.com news service David Shiga A meteor streaks across the sky against a background of star trails in this long-exposure image taken in 1985 during the Geminid shower (Image: Jimmy Westlake) The Lyrid meteors will appear to radiate from the constellation Lyra, which includes Vega, one of the brightest stars in the sky (Illustration: NASA) The oldest known meteor shower is expected to return for its regularly scheduled performance this weekend. Although it is outshone by the December Geminids and the August Perseids, the Lyrids may provide the best...