The annual Perseid meteor shower occurs when Earth passes through debris left by Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. This celestial event reached its peak overnight, aligning with a new moon that created optimal viewing conditions for stargazers as moonlight did not obstruct the sight. Witness the shooting stars below.
In the Negev Desert, near Mitzpe Ramon, Israel, early Thursday, streaks of Perseid meteors lit up the sky at Mount Ramon. At the Visnjan Observatory in Croatia on Wednesday evening, individuals observed a meteor streaking across the heavens.
In North Macedonia, near Kratovo, the night sky above the Stone Dolls of Kuklica saw a meteor streaking early Thursday. On Mount Avala, near Belgrade, Serbia, people congregated around the Monument to the Unknown Hero to witness the Perseid meteor shower.
Over the megalithic stone walls of the ancient Illyrian city of Daorson near Stolac, in southern Bosnia-Herzegovina, a meteor streaked across the night sky. From Jacobsdorf, Germany, a meteor with a green tail and the trails of two satellites were visible during the Perseid meteor shower on Wednesday.
In Malta, a Perseid meteor streaked across the night sky behind St. Mark’s Tower, a 17th-century coastal fortification near Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq.