Will they come, or will they not? That is the question.

On Sept. 1, 2007, a flurry of bright and oddly-colored meteors might—emphasis on might--come streaming out of the constellation Auriga, putting on a beautiful early morning show for sky watchers in western North America.

The source of the putative shower is Comet Kiess (C/1911 N1), a mysterious "long-period comet" that has visited the inner solar system only twice in the past two thousand years. In 83 BC, give or take a few centuries, Comet Kiess swung by the sun and laid down a trail of dusty debris that has been drifting toward Earth's orbit ever since. On Sept. 1, 2007, the dusty trail and Earth will meet.

But will a shower actually materialize? The answer lies in the unknown contents of the debris stream. Full Story