The sparks that shoot across the heavens every mid-to late October aren't fireworks or orbiting satellites. It's the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks on Friday, Oct. 21 and Saturday, Oct 22. Earthlings will be able to see about 20 meteor sightings [1] per hour, according to NASA. Though this will take place during a waning gibbous moon, which will make the sky extra bright with light, you should still see a spectacular show.

If you're lucky enough to get outside, set your alarm for a few hours before dawn on both Friday and Saturday mornings and get as far away from city lights as possible. Check out this interactive sky map [2] as a guide to the night skies in your area, and take it with you on your Orionid meteor shower watch to see how many constellations you can spot. If you're stuck at home, the Slooh space camera [3] will be live streaming the event, starting at 8 p.m. EDT on Oct. 20.