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bits of debris enter Earth's atmosphere, they spread out a bit before they grow hot enough (due to friction with the air) to be seen. So meteors in annual showers are typically seen over a wide area centered on the radiant, but not precisely at the radiant.
• How high up are meteors when they begin to glow?
• Could Earth collide with a comet that causes a meteor shower?
• In a good year, you'll see perhaps 15 meteors per hour in a dark, moonless sky. That's in contrast to the year's best showers - the Perseids of August and Geminids of December - both of which typically produce about 60 meteors per hour.
• Still, the April Lyrids can surprise you. They're known to have outburts of several times the usual number - perhaps up to 60 an hour or so - on rare occasions. Meteor outburts are not predictable. So - like a fisherman - you must take your lawn chair, a thermos of something to drink, whatever other gear you feel you need - and wait. You'll be reclining outside in a dark location, breathing in the night air and gazing up at the starry heavens. Not a bad gig.
• Bottom line: On any clear night around April 20-23, the Lyrid meteor shower will kick off at late evening. Meteor numbers will tend to pick up after midnight, becoming greatest in the dark hour before dawn. In 2013, the waxing gibbous moon is interfering, but give the shower a try, anyway. It's generally a fairly modest shower, perhaps offering 10 to 15 meteors per hour, but it can surprise you. Just remember - no matter where you are on Earth - the best time to watch the Lyrid meteor shower is during the wee hours of the morning after the moon sets.
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