The Orionids peak on the night of Oct 21 into the morning of Oct 22. The shower runs Oct 2 to Nov 7, so the nights on either side are worth a look too.
The meteors are dust shed by Halley's Comet and hit the air at about 66 km/s, which makes them fast and bright, often with glowing trails. Under dark skies, expect 10 to 20 an hour.
This year a waxing gibbous Moon washes out the faint ones, so go out after moonset, in the hours before dawn. The radiant is near Betelgeuse in Orion, but meteors can show up anywhere.
Lie back, look at the whole sky, and give your eyes 20 minutes. A red light keeps them dark-adapted, binoculars are for Orion and the Pleiades between meteors, and Turn Left at Orion helps you find your way around. The simple kit behind this guide is the Starter Kit.
Orionids checklist for tonight
- Start tonight: the peak runs Oct 21-22, and the shower is already active.
- No telescope. Lie back and watch the widest sky you can.
- No white light and no bright phone screen; let your eyes adjust.
- Expect fast meteors anywhere in the sky. Do not stare only at Orion.
- NASA puts a dark-sky rate at about 10-20 an hour. A waxing gibbous Moon hides the faint ones, so use the window after moonset and before dawn.
Sources are NASA's Orionids page and their October note.