"When our planet happens to pass through the debris trail shortly ... after the comet has gone by, we plunge right through this rich concentration of meteoroids, and the normal Leonid drizzle can be replaced by a torrential meteor storm in which thousands of shooting stars might flash overhead every minute," said the magazine Sky and Telescope.

The stream originates from Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, which circles the sun every 33 years. As with all comets, it leaves a trail of debris in its path. When the Earth passes through one of those streams, a meteor shower results. In Tempel-Tuttle's case, the Earth's first pass through the stream after the comet has passed usually produces a dramatic display of meteors. This is why it is referred to as a storm rather than a shower.

The last great Leonid meteor storm was in 1966, when thousands of meteors per hour were seen over the United States. The particles in the coming storm may have velocities more than three times faster than normal for the Leonid stream, experts say.

Sky-watchers should get up just before dawn on November 17 and 18 to see the show.