For the Lyrids, the parent body is Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, a long-period comet, going around the Sun every 415 years or so. Despite the shower going back for thousands of years, the comet was only discovered at its last close passage in 1861. Its next one will be in 2276.

The Lyrid meteor shower is visible in April and will put on a celestial show in the night sky. It can produce up to 100 shooting stars per hour and here's how to watch it in Mississippi and when.