Are you ready to embrace some uncertainty?
There is a chance that the skies over North America will light up on May 30 and 31. Or it might not. The night skies will be filled with shooting stars if we pass through the thickest part of the comet fragment.
Related: The greatest meteor storms of all time
More: Potential meteor shower is 'all or nothing event,' NASA says
If the shower happens in the right way, it could lead to a spectacular meteorite storm, in which Earth passes through an especially thick forest of space rocks, leading to up to 1,000 shooting stars per hour, according to the Washington Post.
The moon will be new and the shower will be visible from the northern sky. There will be a minimum of natural light pollution to contend with when looking for shooting stars.
NASA warned that the sky show is not a guarantee. If the comet that spawned the storm has debris traveling slower than 220 mph, then nothing will make it to Earth and there will be no meteorites.
There is a chance to hear shooting stars.
People should get as far away from city lights as possible to get the best view of meteorites. Wear comfortable clothing, arm against mosquitoes, and sit in a lawn chair to look up. The best streakers are far away.
73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann, or SW3 for short, is the comet that originated the shower. The comet has been falling apart for a while and close to 70 pieces were observed as early as 2006, although NASA suspects more fragments are in the solar system.
If it makes it to us this year, the debris from SW3 will strike Earth's atmosphere very slowly, traveling at just 10 miles per second. We might get surprised by the slower meteors that produce fainter trails in the sky.
The beginner's guide at Space.com is a good place to start if you want to catch meteorites. Don't worry, there are many other meteor showers every year and you can catch any if you can. The best bet is the peak of the Perseids in August.
If you take a picture of the Herculids meteor shower and would like to share it with Space.com's readers, send your photo, comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
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