Get ready for one of the most action packed meteor showers in existence

The Perseids meteor shower is one of the most vibrant of all meteor showers, often dropping about 80 flaming rocks per hour.  It seems, though, that things have ramped up.

"This year, instead of seeing about 80 Perseids per hour, the rate could top 150 and even approach 200 meteors per hour," NASA meteor expert Bill Cooke told Space.com.

August 12 is the day when the shower will be at its most intense.  It will continue on until August 24.  If you want to get a good view, check it out before the full moon on August 18.

Keep watch in a north-eastern direction from the Northern Hemisphere after 10pm to see the action.

Perseids are actually space debris hitting the atmosphere and vaporizing.  They are fragments, breaking off of the 26-kilometer (16 miles) wide Comet Swift-Tuttle, which regularly passes Earth.

Bust out your space-viewing gear and get ready to enjoy the action.