London 2012 Closing Ceremony: Get ready for the greatest after-party

London: Get ready for a star-studded spectacular: Olympic Stadium is being transformed into a giant jukebox of British pop and pizazz for the closing ceremonies of the London Games.

The Spice Girls and The Who are among the acts prepping performances to celebrate the end of the Olympics. Although organizers have tried to the ceremony under wraps, many details have leaked out in the British media, and some of the performers have let the cat out of the bag themselves.

Director David Arnold is calling the production "the greatest after-party in the world."

"If the opening ceremony was the wedding, then we`re the wedding reception," Arnold said.



The Who, George Michael, Muse and Ed Sheeran have all said they will take part in a show that will include performances of 30 British hit singles from the past five decades. The Pet Shop Boys, Annie Lennox and Fatboy Slim will also be on hand to get people dancing.

Do the Olympics really need to end?

As amazing as these Games have been, I wish they didn't have to come to a close. But all good things must run their course, and the 2012 Summer Olympics are no exception. Which means we have one more thing to look forward to before London says goodbye: the closing ceremony.

I may not be one to get excited for opening and closing ceremonies, but it's hard to argue with some British humor and music to close what was an excellent two weeks of competition. From Usain Bolt to (spoiler alert) The Spice Girls, London will leave us with all sorts of interesting performances.

Below, you'll find info on how and when to watch and a whole lot of spoilers as well. Here's to hoping the closing ceremony does the Games that preceded it some justice.

When: Sunday, August 12 at 4:00 p.m. ET.

Television: The closing ceremony will be shown on tape delay on NBC at 7:00 p.m. ET and 7:00 p.m. PT.

Streaming: The closing ceremony will be shown live on NBCOlympics.com at 4:00 p.m. ET.

Perseid meteor shower 2012 peaks tonight

Perseid meteor shower 2012: Video shows where to look for planetary alignment

Sometimes it is good to have a bit of a heads-up when it comes to stargazing, like in the case of the Perseid meteor shower that peaks in the early morning hours of August 12, otherwise one might miss something of interest. In the case of the Perseids, what one could have missed without a mention might have been the planetary alignment of Venus and Jupiter with the crescent moon. But would you know where they were in the night sky? Science@NASA put together a little video primer that shows you where to look for the planets while viewing the meteors streaking across the sky. All can be seen with the naked eye, but since the planets will appear as mere points of light and relatively motionless against the dark backdrop of space, it might be a plus for the amateur starwatcher to know where they are and just how they line up.



They align first on August 11. As the Perseid meteor shower seems to emanate from the constellation of Perseus (thus the name), the alignment will occur below the central emanation point in the Eastern sky in the early morning, with Venus holding a central position below the center of the dispersal region. Jupiter will be seen further up the sky to the viewer's right, and the crescent moon will finish the alignment in what appears to be roughly a 50 degree angle. The red giant star Aldebaran can be seen as well just slightly below and to the right of Jupiter. On August 12, as the meteor shower peaks, the crescent moon, which is waning, moves to place itself in between the two planets, which, given their distances from Earth, appear to be nearly stationary. On the following night -- and last of the alignment -- the crescent moon moves to a position relatively close to Venus but still between the second planet and the fifth.