Consider this a pre-New Year’s Eve fireworks show. Overnight on December 13 and 14, you’ll be able to catch the peak of the famed Geminid meteor shower. Shooting star-seekers will be rewarded with up to 120 meteors per hour during the night.
Though this meteor shower is a Northern Hemisphere event, those in the Southern Hemisphere can also see it. The best time to see the Geminid meteor shower will be around 2am local time. You’re in luck as the moon will be in its waxing crescent phase, so skies will be sufficiently dark without strong moonlight. If you can, head to a place without significant light pollution. Get comfy and train your eyes on the skies. You’ll need about 30 minutes for your eyes to get adjusted to the dark, then you’ll be good to go. Unlike a solar eclipse, you won’t need any special glasses to see this phenomenon, just a good viewing spot and some patience.
EarthSky has some interesting facts about this iconic meteor shower. Unlike most meteor showers that originate from comets, the Geminid meteor shower is the result of an asteroid, 3200 Phaethon to be specific. A comet can be described as a snowball with a layer of ice that turns from a solid to a gas as it nears the sun. An asteroid is a rock, wth rock-sized pieces that burn up in the atmosphere.
So find yourself a certified Dark Site or somewhere away from city lights and you’re in for a treat this week.