If you happen to see a fireball whizzing through the night sky on Monday, it's not a Don't Look Up moment (ie, no need to panic): It's simply the peak of the Southern Taurids meteor shower, which has been active since September, per NPR. Shooting stars—meteors that enter the Earth's atmosphere and streak through the sky—earn the NASA term "fireball" when they burn so bright that they appear even brighter than Venus, which CNN notes is the brightest celestial body, other than the moon. "You go outside, you see the stars, you see the moon, you see the planets—those are always there," says Bill Cooke, head of the space agency's Meteoroid Environment Office. "But you don't always see the meteors. [They] are a transitory part of the night sky, and people get fascinated by that."
Meanwhile, the Northern Taurids, also part of the Taurid meteor stream emanating from its parent comet, Encke, are set to peak next weekend. Both Taurids are said to be "rich in fireballs," pumping them out from September through November, per the American Meteor Society. The Taurids aren't a particularly prolific producer of fireballs in the moment, though, spewing out no more than five or so per hour, so be patient during skygazing sessions. To up your chances of glimpsing one, Space.com recommends seeking out a dark spot as far from light pollution as possible, and to stare at the night sky around where Jupiter is hovering. If you miss the Taurids, there are other meteor shower peaks coming down the pike this year, including the Leonids later this month, and the Geminids and Ursids in December. (More meteor shower stories.)
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