Story highlights Camelopardalids will be visible Friday night into Saturday morning

It's the first new meteor shower in a generation, meteorologist says

Clouds could impede viewing in the Plains and Pacific Northwest

The cosmos has aligned, quite literally, for families, space geeks and insomniacs alike, as the Earth is set to intercept a new meteor shower late Friday into Saturday.

The scientists who discovered the cosmic debris say the Camelopardalid shower could be "significant."

Some forecasts show 200 to 1,000 meteors an hour between 2 and 4 a.m. Eastern Time on Saturday.

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NASA says North America is in the best position to get a glimpse because the peak of the shower will appear during our nighttime, and the debris will "radiate" from a position favorable for viewing.

Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Renata Arpasova spent the early morning hours Sunday photographing the Orionid meteor shower from Wiltshire, England. Hide Caption 1 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Determined to experience his first meteor shower undisturbed by cloudy skies, Robbie López drove out to Chester, Virginia, to photograph the Orionids. Hide Caption 2 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Kevin Lewis stayed up late and braved cold weather just so he could experience the serenity of watching the Orionids from North Wales. Hide Caption 3 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Robbie López stood out in a remote field in Chester, Virginia, to photograph the Orionid meteor shower. Hide Caption 4 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Mike Black photographed the Orionids at 5:00 a.m. from Belmar, New Jersey. "It is worth it to see this natural phenomenon. I am always excited when I see one, it never gets old or boring or tiring," he said. Hide Caption 5 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – As a science teacher, Mike Black says he has always been a fan of meteor showers. "They remind us that we live on a small rocky world with other bits of rock flying around space," he said. Hide Caption 6 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Using a Canon 5D Mark II camera, Mike Black photographed the Orionid meteor shower early Sunday morning. "When one of those bits of rock enters our atmosphere, it burns up and we get to enjoy a meteor shower. It's just one of nature's spectactular shows," he said. Hide Caption 7 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Bill Vaughn says he always enjoys watching a meteor shower with his wife, especially because they never know what to expect. He photographed the Orionids from Mount Lemmon, Arizona. Hide Caption 8 of 9 Photos: Capturing the Orionid meteor shower Capturing the Orionids – Hans-Dieter Fleger photographed the Orionid meteor shower from the foot of Mount Gaustatoppen in Stavsro, Norway, early Sunday morning. Hide Caption 9 of 9

"We expect these meteors to radiate from a point in Camelopardalis, also known as 'the giraffe,' a faint constellation near the North Star," according to Bill Cooke, who heads NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office.

More than just the potential for a spectacular light show, stargazers could witness a rare cosmic event.

"New meteor showers don't come along that often. It'll be the first time in a generation that a new meteor shower will show up," according to CNN Meteorologist Sean Morris.

Where to see them

The best place to watch the shower will be east of the Mississippi River or in California. Precipitation over the Plains and Pacific Northwest could make viewing there difficult.

If you're having trouble seeing it, or if you want to join other amateur astronomers across the country as it happens, NASA's website will host a live chat from 11 p.m. Friday until 3 a.m. EDT Saturday, as well as offering a live view of the skies over Huntsville, Alabama.

Instead of staring at a screen, though, Cooke encourages everyone to look up.

"There could be a new meteor shower, and I want to see it with my own eyes," he said.

The Camelopardalids

The name of the shower, Camelopardalids, refers to the constellation and the angle in our sky from where the meteors will appear.

The shower is made up of debris from Comet 209P/LINEAR, according to NASA . It crosses the Earth's orbit once every five years as it circles the sun.

In 2012, NASA announced that Earth would encounter debris from this comet crossing our orbit this weekend.