STARGAZERS are being urged to look to the skies tonight as the Perseid meteor shower reaches its peak.

With little to cloud cover forecast this evening, it is expected that up to 40 shooting stars will be visible to the naked eye every hour tonight, with the best time to see them being between midnight and 5am.

The astral display will be visible anywhere in the northern hemisphere but experts advise that you avoid as much light pollution as possible.

Places such as the Cambrian Mountains have been designated a dark sky areas due to their remoteness and lack of light pollution from towns and villages.

The best time to head out is not dictated by the meteors themselves, but rather the night sky that serves as their backdrop

For most people, that most intense time of darkness will come between midnight and 5am. That will ensure both that the sky is dark and that the target is as high up in the sky as possible.

The Perseid (Per-see-id) meteor shower is one of the highlights of many meteor hunters’ calendar due to its high hourly rate and bright meteors, caused by the Earth slamming into the debris left behind by comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle in July and August every year.

It is called the Perseids because the meteors seem to originate from the constellation of Perseus. Astronomers call this point the meteor shower’s radiant.

The Royal Observatory in Grenwich advises that if you are heading out to see the shooting stars, you give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust to the dark so that you can catch more of the fainter meteors – this does mean that you should not look at your phone!

Meteors can appear in any part of the sky so the more sky you can see the better. Find an area with a clear view of the horizon and away from trees and buildings. Binoculars and telescopes are not necessary as they will restrict the size of the sky that will be visible to you.