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They return year after year. For many of us, they spell holidays and warm summer nights. But who — or what — are they? The Perseid meteors, of course!

The famous Perseid meteor shower, which returns each summer around mid-August, takes place under favourable conditions in 2005. The maximum occurs on August 12, around 13:00 Eastern Time — during the day. The two best nights for observing the shower are the 11th to 12th and the 12th to 13th.

During the evening, the first-quarter Moon brightens the sky and wipes out the fainter meteors. Conditions will be better after moonset (in Montreal, about 22:40 on the 11th and 23:00 on the 12th), after which the sky will be completely dark. From then on, conditions improve as the radiant (the area of the sky, located near the constellation Perseus, from which the Perseids seem to originate) rises higher and higher. Dawn will bring an end to your night under the stars around 5:00 am.

Around maximum, one can expect to see about 30 meteors per hour under a moderately dark sky, and maybe 50 at a very dark site under good weather conditions. If you live under light-polluted suburban skies, that number will plummet to 10 or 15… You may also be able to catch a few Perseids — although in lesser numbers — outside the peak period that ranges from August 11 to 13: indeed, Perseids are active from the end of July through the third week of August.

Happy stargazing… and don't forget your list of wishes!