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In pictures: Sky lights up at night as Perseid meteors visit Earth

The Perseids were the first meteor shower to be linked to a comet when astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli spotted their association with Swift-Tuttle in 1862.

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(Danny Lawson/PA)

Skygazers were treated to a spectacular display of celestial fireworks overnight as the Earth flew through a cloud of cometary dust.

A meteor during the Perseid shower. (Danny Lawson/PA)
A meteor during the Perseid shower. (Danny Lawson/PA)
(PA Graphics)
(PA Graphics)

A clear sky gave most parts of the UK an opportunity to spot the meteors, said Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna.

The meteor shower lit up the sky near Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

Digital composite photo of the shower near Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales. (Danny Lawson/PA)
Digital composite photo of the shower near Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales. (Danny Lawson/PA)

The meteors, mostly no bigger than a grain of sand, burn up as they hit the atmosphere at 58 kilometres (36 miles) per second to produce a shooting stream of light in the sky.

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