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The Lyrid meteor shower and its bright fireballs could show off Monday

These shooting stars are still peaking, but you may need to plan around a very bright, nearly full moon that's out to spoil the show.

Eric Mack Contributing Editor
Eric Mack has been a CNET contributor since 2011. Eric and his family live 100% energy and water independent on his off-grid compound in the New Mexico desert. Eric uses his passion for writing about energy, renewables, science and climate to bring educational content to life on topics around the solar panel and deregulated energy industries. Eric helps consumers by demystifying solar, battery, renewable energy, energy choice concepts, and also reviews solar installers. Previously, Eric covered space, science, climate change and all things futuristic. His encrypted email for tips is ericcmack@protonmail.com.
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Eric Mack
2 min read
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The 2012 Lyrid meteor shower as captured by astronaut Don Pettit aboard the International Space Station. 

NASA

The first big meteor shower in more than three months continues its crescendo Monday night as the Lyrids threaten to light up spring skies over the northern hemisphere.

Shooting star spotters will be at a bit of a disadvantage because the moon will still loom large Monday evening and early in the morning Tuesday (April's full moon, sometimes called a "pink moon," was on the 19th this year). 

All that moonlight may wash out the less bright meteors, but the Lyrids are known for producing bright fireballs. In fact, there's already been some elevated fireball activity since the Lyrids officially became active last week.

The American Meteor Society says you can expect to see a handful of meteors per hour despite the less than ideal viewing conditions. It's worth checking to see when the moon will rise and set in your location and planning your meteor watching around the few hours of moonless night skies you might have. 

To catch the Lyrid meteor shower, you'll want to get as far away from light pollution as you can, hope for cloudless skies and then just lie on your back, look up and relax. It might take some time for your eyes to adjust to the dark. You don't really need to look at any particular part of the sky. It's actually best to have a vantage point that gives you the widest view of the night sky possible -- big open fields or parks are great. 

Like most other meteor showers, the Lyrids happen each year when the Earth drifts through a cloud of debris left behind by a visiting comet. In this case, the little bits of cosmic crumbs burning high in our atmosphere were left by Comet Thatcher (C/1861 G1), which hasn't been seen since the 19th century and won't be back until the 23rd. 

The odds are that this won't be the best meteor shower of 2019, but there's always the chance of an outburst that produces hundreds of meteors per hour, as well as those bright fireballs that've already been seen.

If you catch some great shooting star shots with your camera, please consider sharing them via Twitter @EricCMack. And happy spotting!

2018 Perseid meteor shower sizzles across the sky

See all photos

Originally posted April 19.
Updated April 22 to reflect Monday night viewing conditions.