It set the Norwich sky and Twitter alight – and now we reveal how you can best enjoy the meteor shower.

Questions have been shooting around cyberspace over what the bright flash of light over Norwich was.

A lightning strike to RAF planes was suggested – but south Norfolk astronomer Mark Thompson, 41, said Monday night's sightings could have been a meteor as the peak of the Geminid meteor shower was approaching.

The flashes of blue and white were reported from the A140 near Long Stratton, at Thickthorn near Norwich, over the A47 at Postwick, near Stockton on the A146, over Little Melton, at Lenwade near Dereham, over Aylsham and Buxton, near Dunston Hall, over Sprowston Road and at North Walsham.

Share your weather pictures by signing up to iWitness at http://norfolk.iwitness24.co.uk or email them to picdesk@archant.co.uk The Geminid meteor shower is one of the most spectacular events in any stargazer's calendar.

How to...

To catch a glimpse of the shower, head somewhere with as little light pollution as possible, and once you've settled on a spot, look up and try and take in as much of the sky as possible, making sure it's a clear night.

If it is, you should wrap up warm and head outside with sleeping bags and hot water bottles for at least 30 minutes to get used to the darkness.

You don't need binoculars or a telescope to see the showers – they will limit your view, instead just stare at the sky.

And don't lose heart if you don't see anything for a while – the meteors tend to come in spurts interspersed with lulls and appear randomly.

The shower takes place every December as the Earth passes through a debris trail from an asteroid called 3200 Phaethon.

As the bits of debris from the asteroid crash through the Earth's upper atmosphere they vaporise, turning into the colourful Geminid meteor shower.

The first reports of the shower emerged in the mid-1800s, but there were only 10-20 meteors per hour.

This shower started on Sunday December 7, and peaks on December 13 and 14 when the moon is starting to wane.

There's not much to see in the early evening, but things start to get more exciting from around 10pm, with the best time to spot a shooting star between 2am and 3am.