THE Taurid meteor shower is set to peak tonight, casting "slow and bright" shooting stars across the sky.

These fireballs, which originate from the constellation Taurus, will be around until 13 November.

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But after Wednesday, the annual meteor shower won't pass Earth again until next year.

Astronomers at Greenwich Observatory expect there to be roughly five shooting stars per hour, that are "relatively slow and bright".

"The Taurids are a slow and long-lasting meteor shower, occurring every year from late October and through November," the observatory wrote.

"Even at their peak, the Taurids are not particularly frequent, but they do provide a sprinkling throughout the two months."

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The fireballs will move across the sky at roughly 65,000mph, or 12miles per second.

For reference, Orionids space rocks - one of the most reliable meteor showers - dart across the sky at about 148,000mph, or 41miles per second.

You'll be able to see Taurid meteors streaking across the entire sky - depending on the cloud coverage in your area.

The Taurids pass Earth in two streams: the northern and southern.

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The southern wave peaked between 10 to 11 October, and Earth is about to head into the peak of the northern stream.

The Taurids, dubbed the 'Halloween Fireballs', originate from Comet Encke.

However, both the Taurids and Encke are believed to be remnants of a much larger comet that has disintegrated over the past 20,000 to 30,000 years.

To locate them, simply look towards the constellation Orion - which can be identified by three bright stars that make up Orion's Belt.

If you were to create a line between the three stars and follow that line upwards and to the right, you’ll hit star Aldebaran, which lies in the Taurus constellation.

This the best area to look for the meteor shower.

If you're struggling to find the right constellation, try using an astronomy app on your phone.

What is a meteor shower?

Here's what you need to know...

• During a meteor shower, fireballs appear to streak across the sky
• This happens because pieces of debris are rapidly burning up as they enter Earth’s atmosphere
• That debris is often left behind by a collision between two space objects, like a planet or comet
• The Orionids shower is debris from Halley’s Comet, a huge chunk of ice orbiting the Sun
• Many meteor showers are repeated
• They occur at a height of around 62 miles