Have your wishes ready, we could see some shooting stars this weekend!
The annual Geminid meteor shower started on the 4th of December and is set to peak Sunday night/early Monday morning. Of course, there’s a good chance it will be cloudy here so if there’s a clear sky in the evening during any of the next several days, make sure to take a look because that might be your best opportunity to see dozens of meteorites!
The best meteor shower of the year, the Geminids, peaks this weekend!
Will you be watching? pic.twitter.com/sl0yhfMEHI
— Planetary Society (@exploreplanets) December 10, 2020
Your best chance at some shooting star action is to get away from city lights, and to keep your eye on the sky, they move fast so you don’t want to miss them! If possible, avoid obstructions and trees – a field would be ideal. Also, the light from your phone makes it harder for your eyes to get used to the dark, so stick that bad boy in your pocket. Grab a hot bevvy, look Northeast, and watch the meteors fly!
The sky show’s name is inspired by the constellation which the meteors originate from, Gemini and are thought to be debris from the asteroid 3200 Phaethon.
In other space news:
THE GEMINIDS ARE COMING: Earth is entering a stream of debris from rock comet 3200 Phaethon, source of Geminid meteor shower. Last night, NASA's meteor cameras detected 8 Geminid fireballs over USA/ a # that will sharply increase in the nights ahead: 60/hr pic.twitter.com/SGWEMoNGUW— Sven Sundgaard (@svensundgaard) December 10, 2020
