Watch the amazing shooting star show over France tonight – if weather permits
The annual display includes up to 120 shooting stars per hour
The display will peak at around 20:00
Ingo Bartussek/Shutterstock
A shooting star display providing a stunning show of up to 120 stars darting across the sky per hour could be visible in France tonight.
That is if cloudy skies do not prevent stargazers from seeing the Quadrantid (Quadrantides) shower. Clouds are currently forecast for many areas of France but parts of the north and east near the Belgian border should have clear evening skies.
Read more: New Year brings storms and snow: French weather outlook December 30 - January 3
One plus is that the moon – often too bright and getting in the way of meteor showers – will not be so bright this evening, reducing interference.
Best way to see the shower
The shower has been described by Nasa as one of the best of the year and is caused by the 2003 EH1 asteroid.
It will be at its global peak tonight (January 2 - 3) at around 20:00. This is when the highest number of stars may be visible per hour.
The shower will last for a couple of days after tonight, although fewer shooting stars will be visible each night.
Its intensity will peak in Europe on January 5, however this will be in the middle of the day, meaning the ‘brightest’ shooting stars will not be visible.
To view the display tonight, you will need to look towards the north-east of the sky.
Most of the meteors will move east-west, however they can appear in any direction so keep your eyes peeled.
If you are planning on going outside (to attempt) to watch the shower, wrap up as temperatures will be chilly, reaching into the minuses in several areas.
You should be in an area with as little light pollution as possible, and avoid looking at light such as from your smartphone prior to the meteor shower, as this will prevent your eyes from adjusting to the night sky and seeing the shooting stars so clearly.
