Night sky watcher Autumn Clark took this photo of a Perseid meteor streaking through the sky on August 12, 2012 from Chula Vista, Calif.
Night sky watcher Krystal Denton took this photo of Venus, moon, and Jupiter in perfect alignment along with an unexpected meteor falling on August 12, 2012 from the Lost Dutchman State Park in Apache Junction, Ariz.
Night sky watcher Vaibhav Tripathi took this photo of a Perseid meteor from the Santa Cruz Mountains near Palo Alto, Calif. on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Allan Candler took this photo of the moon, Jupiter and a meteor from Batesville, Ark. on August 12, 2012. Candler wrote, "This was my first meteor shower to witness, and I was amazed by it."
Night sky watcher David Proebstel took this photo of the crescent moon, Venus and a Perseid meteor on August 12, 2012 from Sequim, Wash.
Night sky watcher David Harpe took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Boulder, Colo. on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Greg Kretovic took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Nahma, Mich. on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Ali Carey took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Leysdown, Isle of Sheppey on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher David Kingham took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Snowy Range in Wyoming on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Natalie Duran took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Joshua Tree National Park on August 12, 2012. The photographer can be seen standing on a rock in the background.
Night sky watcher Chris Bakley sent in this photo of a Perseid meteor taken from Cape May Court House, NJ, on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Bill Vaughn took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Mount Lemmon near Tucson, Ariz. on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Jon Gibson took this photo of the Milky Way during the Perseid shower on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Bill Vaughn took this photo of the Perseid meteor shower from Mount Lemmon near Tucson, Ariz. on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher Madison Jindrak took this photo of a Perseid meteor from Knoxville, TN, on August 12, 2012.
Night sky watcher John Brickley photographed this Perseid meteor at Little Sweden, California on August 11, 2012.
Night sky watcher Greg S. Kornmueller sent in this photo of two Perseid meteors taken near Silver Eagle Refinery at Evans, WY, on August 13, 2012. He writes: "'X' marks the spot."
Veteran astrophotographer Roberto Porto snapped this spectacular view of a Perseid meteor over Mount Teide National Park in the Canary Islands off the west coast of Africa on Aug. 11, 2012 during the peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower. The Milky Way and rock arch Zapata de la Reina (Queen's Shoe) are visible.
Night sky watcher Rowena Zimmers sent in this photo of her family watching the 2012 Perseid meteor shower peak from their roof in Illinois on Aug. 11-12, 2012.
Photographer Jeff Rose captured this amazing photo of a Perseid meteor and the bright moon just after 1 a.m. on Aug. 11 during the 2012 from Cave City, Arkansas, during the 2012 Perseid meteor shower peak.
Night sky watcher Tomáš Chlíbec took this photo during the Perseid meteor shower on August 12, 2012 near Prague in the Czech Republic.
The moon and Venus shine bright alongside a Perseid meteor (upper right) on Aug. 12 in this view by photographer Tyler Leavitt in Las Vegas, Nevada, during the peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower on Aug. 12.
Stargazer Tuomo Leppänen of Lahti, Finland, captured this amazing photo of a Perseid meteor lighting up the sky during the Aug. 11-12 peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower.
NASA's all-sky camera network run by Marshall Space Flight Center in Hunstville, Ala., captured this composite view of Perseid meteors (and some others) seen on Aug. 10, 2012. The cameras used are in New Mexico.
Photographer Tyler Leavitt captured this bright Perseid meteor on Aug. 12 as it lit up the sky just outside of Las Vegas, Nevada, during the peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower.
Photographer Tyler Leavitt captured this bright Perseid meteor on Aug. 12 as it lit up the sky just outside of Las Vegas, Nevada, during the peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower.
Night sky watcher Adrian Gutierrez snapped this view of a Perseid meteor from Lockhart, Texas, during the Aug. 11-12 peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower.
Amateur astronomer William Federspiel snapped this view of the Aug. 11-12 peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower from Richmond, Kentucky.
Stargazer Samuel Hartman caught this view of a Perseid meteor and the moon during the shower's peak on Aug. 12, 2012, from State College, Pa.
Stargazer Matthew Henderson snapped this amazing photo of a Perseid meteor shining with the moon (right), Jupiter and Venus (bottom) shining over Lake Berryessa, Calif., during the Aug. 11-12 peak of the 2012 Perseid meteor shower.
Stargazer Samuel Hartman caught this view of a Perseid meteor during the shower's peak on Aug. 12, 2012, from State College, Pa.
Stargazer Douglas Keck snapped this photo of two Perseid meteors together while watching the 2012 Perseid meteor shower on Aug. 11-12, 2012, from his driveway in Bella Vista, Arkansas. Keck used a Nikon D70 camera.
Even the bright lights of Los Angeles, Calif., couldn't wash out the 2012 Perseid meteor shower. Night sky observer Maxim Senin captured a Perseid (lower right) in this view from Los Angeles National Forest north Castaic, Calif., outside L.A. (the city lights appear bright due to long exposure) using a Canon 20D camera.
This NASA sky map shows the location in the northern sky where the Perseid meteor shower will appear to radiate from in 2012. The Perseid meteor shower peaks every August and appears to fly out of the constellation Perseus.
The Perseid meteors appear to radiate from a point between the constellations Perseus and Cassiopeia, in the northeastern section of the sky. The 2012 Perseid meteor shower display peaks on Aug. 12.
This chart depicts the position (in degrees above the horizon) that the Perseid meteor shower radiant will appear in the northeastern sky in August 2012. Your closed fist held out at arm's length covers 10 degrees of the night sky.
