Orionid meteor shower to streak across night sky this week

One of the best-known meteor showers of the year is returning to our skies this week, as the Earth passes through debris left behind by Halley's Comet.

The Orionid meteor shower is active from 2 October until 7 November and will peak overnight from 21 to 22 October.

The display occurs at around the same time each year as the Earth passes through a trail of dust and debris left behind by Halley's Comet.

The best time to spot the meteors will be between midnight and dawn, when the sky is at its darkest.

As tiny particles from the comet enter the Earth's atmosphere at high speed, they heat up and produce streaks of light across the night sky that we see as meteors.

The Orionids are particularly fast, entering the atmosphere at around 41 miles per second and can leave glowing trails which remain visible for several seconds.

Halley's Comet is one of the most famous comets in our Solar System and has been observed from Earth for centuries. It takes around 76 years to complete one orbit of the Sun and was last seen from Earth in 1986.

But while the comet itself is a rare visitor, the Earth encounters material left behind by it twice a year, resulting in the Eta Aquariid meteor shower in May and the Orionids in October.

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