PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -- Stargazers and space enthusiasts, get ready for a major meteor shower.

Kevin Schindler, a historian at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, says there is something significant about this particular shower. “What’s great about it is there’s a higher number of fireballs you might see,” he said.

Watch for the Lyrid meteor shower this week The first meteor shower of spring, known as the Lyrid meteor shower, will present a night skywatching show beginning on Sunday evening and peaking on Wednesday night.

The Lyrid meteor shower is the second major one of 2020, happening this week when the earth moves into the orbital plane of Comet Thatcher. Schindler explained the meaning behind the meteors' name.

“The reason they’re called Lyrid is because these meteors, if you trace the path, you only see it for a split second," said Schindler. "But imagine tracing back where it started. They appear to come from the constellation Lyra."

Schindler further broke down the difference between a shooting star and a comet. “On any given night, we might see a shooting star, and that’s mostly a sand-sized piece of debris from comets or asteroids, or other space junk. But then we have comets, which pass through the inner part of the solar system. And as they do that, they warm up. And quite often, they’ll get tails, and those tails will pass through the inner part of the solar system,” he explained.

In the past, the Lyrid meteor has had some brilliant outburst. The meteor showers have been going on for several days now, and will continue for several more. However, there is a peak time to see it. Schindler suggests going out to see it on the night of April 21. "Late at night, you’ll see more than if you went out three days earlier,” he said.

You’ll see about ten to 20 meteors per hour. Of course, Arizona’s perfect weather is playing a role too.

“There’s going to be virtually no moonlight, and we’re really close to new moon, so that’s nice. You can really look at any part of the sky, but the best part is to look at the darkest part,” said Schindler. The darkest part of the sky would be to the northeast after midnight.

“In these times, we’re looking for a little normalcy, and a little stability and things to do that are fun. And going outside, getting lawn chairs/couches out, and just looking up at the sky and hanging out, it’s a lot of fun,” said Schindler.

Lowell Observatory will have live feed starting at 9 p.m. on Tuesday for people to learn about it.