August 12 marks the peak of the meteor shower known as the Perseids. These miniature fragments are left behind by one of the comets that passes by Earth every few decades. Every year in the first half of August, our planet passes through a belt of these fragments, which glow as they burn up in the atmosphere.
The Perseids appear to come from the area of the constellation Perseus—hence their name. Huge numbers fall on the day of the peak. It is sometimes possible to observe a shooting star every second. In fact, they are very far from being stars, as the glowing fragments rarely exceed a mass of one gram. They pose no threat to us because they burn up completely before reaching the ground.
This year, conditions for observing the Perseids may not be good, as clouds are gathering over Bolesławiec.