Where and when to see the shooting stars of Halley's Comet

The Orionid meteor shower will culminate on 21 and 22 October and is expected to produce between 15 and 20 meteors per hour this year.

This year's rain is a bit slow – in good years it can produce up to 80 meteors an hour. Another obstacle is the moon. This year, the Orionids arrive shortly before the full moon on October 24, which means that its light will make it more difficult to spot shooting stars.

But not everything is lost. The annual shower is visible in the night sky since October 2 and will last until November 7.

The meteor shower rises on the morning of October 21, just before dawn. However, if you go out early in the morning, a few days before the summit, you will avoid as much as possible the glare of the moon, which could make the observation of meteors a little more successful.

Meteor shower occurs when the debris of passing comets exceed the Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds. These tiny space rocks vaporize, producing a bright flash that travels through the sky.

The meteorite rain seems to come from the direction of the constellation Orion. iStock

The Orionids come from comet 1P / Halley, better known as Halley's Comet. It is a periodic comet that enters the vicinity of the Earth approximately every 76 years. It was recorded on Earth in 1066. Observers in England thought it was a bad omen. Later that year, King Harold II was killed at the Battle of Hastings, giving way to William the Conqueror.

The last time Earth observers saw it, it was in 1986 and the next time it will enter the internal solar system, it is in 2061.

The radiant (the point in the sky from which the meteors seem to come) is the constellation of Orion. NASA notes that you should not look in the constellation to see the meteor shower.

The space agency added: "The Orionids are visible in the northern and southern hemispheres during the hours following midnight. Find a place well away from the lights of the city or the street. Get ready with a sleeping bag, blanket or garden chair. Lie on your back, feet to the southeast if you are in the northern or northeastern hemisphere if you are in the southern hemisphere, and look up contemplating as much sky as possible .

"In less than 30 minutes in the dark, your eyes will adapt and you will start seeing meteors. Be patient, the show will last until dawn, so you'll have plenty of time to take a look. "