Perseid meteor shower puts on a spectacular show

A meteor streaks past stars during the Perseid meteor shower over El Torcal nature park reserve in the southern Spanish town of Antequera, near Malaga Photograph: Jon Nazca/Reuters

A Perseid meteor illuminates the sky over Nanning, China Photograph: KeystoneUSA-ZUMA / Rex Features

A long exposure image across the night sky over Bukelon castle near the village of Matochina, Bulgaria Photograph: Vassil Donev/EPA

A meteor streaks past stars in the night sky over Leeberg hill in Grossmugl, north of Vienna, Austria Photograph: Lisi Niesner/Reuters

A meteor streaks across the sky against a field of stars above Grazalema, southern Spain Photograph: Jorge Guerrero/AFP/Getty Images

A meteor streaks past stars in the night sky over Stonehenge Photograph: Kieran Doherty/Reuters

A meteor visible over the Matka mountain, near the Macedonian capital Skopje Photograph: Georgi Licovski/EPA

A meteor enters the earth's atmosphere in this long exposure picture taken on a mountain road south of Macedonia's capital Skopje Photograph: Boris Grdanoski/AP