What Does a Meteor Shower Look Like? What Time Is Best to See the Eta Aquariids On 5/5/21 at 12:39 PM EDT The Eta Aquariids meteor shower has reached its peak, but what should skygazers look out for and when is the best time to watch? Meteor showers are celestial events during which several meteors appear to originate from a single point in the night sky—known as the radiant. These events take place when the Earth passes through streams of cosmic debris left behind by comets and, in rare cases, asteroids. Meteors are the streaks of light we see in the sky when tiny fragments of space debris enter the Earth's atmosphere and burn up at high speed. These streaks of light are popularly referred to as "shooting stars."