Meteor shower is playing on the late, late show

By Casey Ramsdell, Globe Correspondent

For many, the Boston skyline is a thing of beauty. But for those seeking a natural lightshow, the next few mornings could provide some fleeting drama.

The Orionid meteor shower will light up the skies over the next three mornings. The shower occurs every year during the third week of October and is best seen between midnight until dawn, away from the glare of the city.

Meteors are “tiny little particles that burn up in the atmosphere,” said Michael Person, a research scientist at MIT's Institute of Technology’s department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences.

As the meteoroids burn up, they form a streak in the sky. The Orionids earned their name because the streaks look they appear from the constellation Orion, he said.

“[It’s] not one of the bigger ones during the year,'' Person said of the shower. "But if you go out in the dark somewhere you can see things.”

While Person recommends finding a very dark space outside the city to watch the show, viewers in the city may be able to see them by the riverfront or on the roof of a tall building.

“Right in the city, it’s somewhat tricky,” he said, of trying to view the showers in Boston.

The darkness will also help because of another glare in the sky: the moon. Person said the moon is in the “wrong place at the wrong time” right now.

Although the shower may not be one of the show-stoppers of the year, it doesn’t mean it isn’t worth bundling up and heading outside to sneak a peek.

"They can surprise you," Person said.

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