On Sunday night the gibbous moon rises late in the evening near the red planet Mars. Both are in the zodiacal constellation Pisces. Mars has brightened considerably in just the last few months.

Mars will be closest to the Earth and at its brightest in October. Enjoy watching in the weeks ahead as it gets brighter. It also rises earlier in the evening. By October the planet will rise in the east when the sun is setting in the west.

The Perseid Meteor Shower reaches its peak on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. but it is a show that spreads through many nights. A meteor shower is when many small particles enter our atmosphere and burn up. They look like shooting stars. In this case, the Earth is going through the remnants of Comet Swift Tuttle. It’s an annual event. This shower is a favorite not only because its one of the two most productive showers of the year, but also the comfort and convenience. You watch it on a summer evening. The other big shower of the year, the Geminids, happens on a cold winter night in December.

Meteors will appear almost anywhere overhead and tend to come from one place in the sky, the constellation Perseus for which the shower is named. Perseus is in the northeast and rises around midnight.