You'll be counting meteors using a screen that looks like this:

It works a bit like a piano keyboard. Instead of musical notes, however, the keys are labeled with astronomical magnitudes. If you see a 1st-magnitude meteor, tap the "+1" key. If you see a fireball of magnitude -2 or less, tap the "-2" key and so on. The app keeps track of all your taps for you.

Before the actual counting begins, you'll be asked if you'd like to record an audio soundtrack to go along with your data-taking:

If you select RECORD AUDIO, any verbal comments you make during the observing session will be recorded and transmitted to NASA along with your numerical counts. Verbal comments are a good way to identify sporadic meteors or meteors from minor showers that might not be part of your main observing program. You can also describe how meteors looked, how long they lingered, or just shout "wow!"

When you are finished with an observing session, swipe a finger along the bar that says "Swipe here to end session..." And you're done! Your data (counts + audio) will be automatically uploaded to our server for analysis by NASA personnel.