One of the year's most prolific meteor showers will peak overnight Tuesday and into Wednesday, as the Perseid shower hits its zenith.

The meteor shower, which runs from July until late August, will peak late Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning, and under optimal viewing conditions will produce between 50 and 100 meteors per hour.

What causes the meteor shower? When is the best time to see it? And, most important, will the Chicago area be able to enjoy it this year? Here's what you need to know.

According to NASA, each summer the Earth's orbit around the sun takes it through the debris of Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle, which orbits the sun once every 133 years.

Its nucleus is estimated to be approximately 16 miles wide, nearly twice the size of the object that is believed to have led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

As with other comets, Comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle leaves behind debris each time it passes through the Solar System, and as the Earth moves through it, the debris encounters resistance from its atmosphere, causing them to burn up in spectacular displays.

According to NASA, the Perseids are noteworthy because the meteors leave long streaks of light and color behind them in the sky. It's also the best meteor shower that occurs during the summer months, allowing for pleasant conditions outside.

According to the Adler Planetarium, the peak of the meteor shower will arrive on Tuesday night and will continue into Wednesday morning.

In order to maximize your chances to see meteors, astronomers recommend that looking up toward the eastern sky and waiting for approximately 15 minutes to allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness. No telescopes or other equipment are required to see meteors, as this meteor shower causes especially bright tails to appear in the sky.

Unfortunately, our view of the Perseid meteor shower may be ruined overnight by a couple of different factors.

The primary factor will be cloud cover, which could linger after showers and thunderstorms move through the area Tuesday evening. Those clouds could stick around well into Wednesday, though occasional clearing is possible.

The other issue could be the moon, which is in its waning gibbous phase after the weekend's full moon. That could help to obscure some of the fainter meteors coming through the atmosphere, according to the Adler Planetarium.

Even if the show is ruined overnight, the Perseid meteor shower will continue through Aug. 23, leaving a few more opportunities to see at least some meteors, according to NASA.