Sky lights up at night as Perseid meteors visit Earth
Skygazers were treated to a spectacular display of celestial fireworks over the weekend as the Earth flew through a cloud of cometary dust.
The Perseid meteors, shed by comet Swift-Tuttle, stage their show every August and are among the brightest of all shooting stars.
But clear skies across much of the Northern hemisphere meant that the full show was visible to many.
Astronomers took to their telescopes and cameras to capture stunning stills and footage of the peak of the shower on Saturday night.
PERSEID METEOR SHOWER The Perseid meteor shower occurs each year between July 17 and 24 August, peaking between August 9 and 13. Although the peak has passed, they are still expected to be visible until next Sunday. Meteor showers occur when a comet comes close to the sun and produces debris - meteoroids - that spread around the comet's orbit. During the Perseid meteors, debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle bursts into the Earth's upper atmosphere at around 130,000 miles (210,000 km) per hour. Since meteoroids that create a meteor shower all move on a parallel path, and at the same speed, they seem to originate from a single point in the sky to observers on Earth, known as the radiant.
Among the enthusiasts was Ric Taylor, from Bury, Greater Manchester, who captured this time lapse video from his garden.
It shows a flurry of shooting stars streaking overhead through a relatively cloudless night sky.
Speaking to Manchester Evening News, he said: 'Photography is one of my passions, especially when it comes to the night sky.
'I just love taking photos of the night, as I've slowly gotten better I started taking time lapse videos, its a natural progression.
'On my meagre wage I sacrifice a social life to travel and take photos.'
The Perseid meteor shower occurs each year between July 17 and 24 August, peaking between August 9 and 13.
At its peak overnight on Saturday into Sunday, 150 meteors an hour shot through they sky.
Nasa had warned that the shower would not be the 'brightest shower in recorded human history' as some had claimed.
There were also fears that this year's year's moon, which is currently around three-quarters full, might wash out many of the fainter shooting stars.
And although the peak has passed, some meteors are still expected to be visible until next Sunday.
Meteor showers occur when a comet comes close to the sun and produces debris - meteoroids - that spread around the comet's orbit.
Astronomers took to their telescopes and cameras to capture stunning stills and footage of the peak of the shower on Saturday night (pictured). Among them was Ric Taylor, from Bury, Greater Manchester, who captured these images
A clear sky gave most parts of the UK an opportunity to spot the meteors. This image shows a single meteor in the sky above Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales National Park
This digital composite photo of the shower over Hawes is made up of 30 photographs taken over a period of 15 minutes
During the Perseid meteors, debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle bursts into the Earth's upper atmosphere at around 130,000 miles (210,000 km) per hour.
The meteors, mostly no bigger than a grain of sand, burn up as they hit the atmosphere at 36 miles (58 km) per second to produce a shooting stream of light in the sky.
Since meteoroids that create a meteor shower all move on a parallel path, and at the same speed, they seem to originate from a single point in the sky to observers on Earth, known as the radiant.
A digital composite photo of the shower above Hawes shows some of the roughly 150 meteors an hour that shot through the sky at the peak of the shower on Saturday night
This stunning snap was taken over Normanton in West Yorkshire in the early hours of Sunday morning
A Catholic statue, cross and a church seen during the Perseid meteor shower near the village of Rubezhevichi, some 30 miles (50 km) from Minsk, Belarus, late on Saturday
The best place to view them is under a clear sky and away from urban areas, where light pollution can make spotting meteors more difficult.
A clear sky gave most parts of the UK an opportunity to spot the meteors, said Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna.
He said: 'There were some good cloud breaks, so many areas would have had a good chance to see them during the early hours.
'It would have been pretty good viewing.'
The meteor shower lit up the sky near Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Elsewhere across Europe, skywatchers were also busy witnessing the stunning display.
A white shooting star as it passes over the church at Rubezhevichi in Belarus
Meanwhile in Macedonia, meteors were captured over the artificial lake Kozjak above Skopje, with one visible in the top righthand corner of this image
This image shows a faint image at its centre, as it whizzed over the mountains in Le Sepey, Switzerland
A perseid meteor along the Milky Way can be seen here illuminating the dark sky near Comillas, Cantabria community, in northern Spain
Here a couple near Comillas, Cantabria community, northern Spain can be seen watching a bright streak of light, visible at the centre of this image
A photographer in near the village of Rubezhevichi, some 30 miles (50 km) from Minsk, Belarus, captured a striking image of a red hued meteor streaking above a Catholic statue, cross and church late on Saturday.
Meanwhile in Macedonia, meteors were captured over the artificial lake Kozjak above Skopje.
Shooting stars were also photographed above the mountains of Le Sepey, in Switzerland.
Beachgoers near Comillas, in the Cantabria community autonomous region of northern Spain were treated to a particularly romantic display.
One couple was pictured watching the shower over the Bay of Biscay.