The higher this apparent point of origin is above the northeastern horizon, the more meteors will be visible. Perseus is just north of the familiar constellation Cassiopeia. A combination of reclining lawn chair, light sleeping bag and insect repellent is a good way to frustrate mosquitoes and still keep an eye on the sky. If you start watching early in the evening, concentrate on an area of sky in the northeast about halfway between the horizon and overhead. This area will climb higher as the night progresses and more meteors appear.
Most meteor showers happen when Earth crosses the orbit of a comet.
The meteors are caused by tiny particles of dust that were released from the comet's nucleus and left behind in space as the comet got closer to the sun. The Perseids come from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which last passed by in 1992. As Earth plows through this stream of particles, each one hits our upper atmosphere at a speed of 60 kilometers per second and burns up almost instantly from friction with air molecules. As you watch for Perseids, you can admire the brilliance of the giant planet Jupiter, which will rise shortly after 10 p.m. local time and dominate the eastern half of the evening sky. Rising about 80 minutes later will be Saturn, almost as bright as the star Vega in the constellation Lyra the Harp.