This event is known for the brightness and speed of its meteors. According to NASA, it's one of the most beautiful meteor showers of the year. It's expected to produce around 20 visible meteors per hour at its peak, under ideal conditions.

Where do Orionid meteors come from? The shower is named after the constellation Orion because the meteors appear to originate from that point in the sky. In fact, its meteors are visible in the night sky.

The true source of the meteors is the comet 1P/Halley, also known as Halley's Comet. When Earth's atmosphere passes through the dust trail of Halley, the dust particles break apart, and voila! Meteors appear.

Every October, Halley's Comet and Earth perform this same song and dance, creating the Orionids. So, the Orionid meteor shower is a kind of entertainment for Earthlings between the comet's full appearances, which occur roughly once every 76 years. (Fun fact: when the same sequence of events happens in May, the shower is called the Eta Aquarids.)

Twinkle, twinkle, falling star... SHORT WAVE Twinkle, twinkle, falling star... Orionids are known to streak across the sky quite rapidly, at about 66 kilometers or 41 miles per second! As a result, they can leave glowing trails that may last from a few seconds to minutes.

When and how to observe the Orionids The Orionid peak will occur during the pre-dawn hours on October 20-21. So, you can either stay up late on Friday or wake up before dawn on Saturday to optimize your viewing.

Speaking of optimizing, NASA suggests that you can increase your chances of getting a good view by finding a spot to observe away from city or streetlights if possible, and allowing your eyes to adjust to the darkness for about 30 minutes. Then, they recommend lying down or sitting with your feet facing southeast if you're in the Northern Hemisphere, or northeast if you're in the Southern Hemisphere. Finally, NASA recommends diverting your gaze away from the Orion constellation by 45-90 degrees. If you look directly at them as they emerge from Orion, the meteors will appear shorter and less impressive.

Scientists think they know why interstellar object 'Oumuamua moved so strangely SCIENCE Scientists think they know why interstellar object 'Oumuamua moved so strangely (If you love taking photographs, NASA has tips on how to make your meteor shower photos as effective as possible.)