Discover 25 shooting stars per hour tonight in the Delta Aquariid meteor shower – best time to look up and four tips for seeing them

A DOUBLE meteor shower with up to 25 shooting stars per hour is set to fly overhead tonight as two teams of space rocks pass by Earth.

The larger Delta Aquariid meteor shower will be joined by the smaller Alpha Capricornids at a peak between July 29 and 30.

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The annual Delta Aquariid meteor shower is active from July 18 to August 21, peaking in late July.

It spits out about 15 to 20 shooting stars per hour in the Northern Hemisphere.

According to the American Meteor Society, viewing should be even better in the Southern Hemisphere.

Meanwhile, the Alpha Capricornids – which are active from July 7th to August 15th – will peak on July 31st.

This should produce about five meteors per hour.

The best time to take a look at the screen will be between midnight and 5:30 am.

Where to look

Due to the time of year and longer nights, they can be more difficult to spot.

Here are four tips for giving yourself the best chance of seeing them:

Avoid light pollution

Stargazers should go to a location well away from city lights, city glare, and even street lamps.

“This could mean going to the countryside, a nearby park or even doing something as simple as turning your back to streetlights if you can’t go anywhere,” advises the Royal Greenwich Observatory.

Unobstructed view

Make sure your stargazing location has an unobstructed view of the horizon and above.

Away from trees or cityscapes is best.

“Meteors can appear anywhere in the sky, so the more sky you can see, the better,” adds the Observatory.

Choose binoculars wisely

Binoculars are not always necessary – or useful.

They can limit your view of the sky, and when trying to get a closer look, you may miss shooting stars out of frame.

Put away the phone

You must give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust to the darkness so you can see the fainter meteors.

This means you need to turn off your phone screen.