The Perseid meteor shower is poised to reach its peak this weekend (12/13 August), giving stargazers a chance to get a rare glimpse of a spectacular night-time display.

The annual shower takes placed every July and August as the Earth passes debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet.

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Hundreds of the meteors are expected to be visible from across the world, weather depending.

In the UK, it will peak at around 11.05pm on Saturday 12 August and should be visible from most areas.

But experts have warned that with the moon at three-quarters full, it may make it harder this year to spot the meteors as they fly past.

Ultimately, it will be a game of luck depending where you look and where you are.

There are clear conditions expected in Belfast and Cardiff, but some stargazers in London and Edinburgh may be left disappointed with more cloud cover expected.

If you stay up late to find your area covered in cloud, or you live in a busy city with high levels of light pollution, then you can watch the live stream here.

Robotic telescope service Slooh are bringing experts together to help stargazers watch the 2017 Perseids online.

Robin Scagell, vice president of the Society for Popular Astronomy said: "We can look forward to a decent display, even though they aren't going to be raining down from the sky.

"The Perseids can be very bright and often quite spectacular. Some meteor showers are slow, but we are moving into the Perseid stream so they are coming at us quite swiftly.

"I think under good conditions you might see one or two a minute, probably more towards Sunday morning rather than Saturday."

perseid meteor shower
A Perseid shooting star near the Pleiades over Woodingdean, Sussex Darren Baskill