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Gemenids 12/21

Catch the peak of the Geminid meteor shower on Dec. 13-14

The Geminid meteor shower is set to peak this coming Monday night into Tuesday morning, but the presence of another celestial object may limit the viewing potential for one of the best annual meteor showers.

A reason why the Geminids are so popular is due to the fact that it is active all night long, not just during the middle of the night. It also boasts over 100 meteors per hour under ideal conditions, but onlookers should curb expectations for this year’s showing due to the moon.

“The bright gibbous moon will hinder viewing conditions this year,” Robert Lunsford told AccuWeather in an email. Lunsford is the journal editor for the American Meteor Society (AMS). “The moonlight will obscure the fainter Geminids, which make up a majority of the meteors seen.”

However, the moon will not be glowing all night long, providing a window of opportunity for some good viewing.

The meteor shower is also known to have bright, slow meteors that skywatchers can easily see, according to Space.com.

However, this year may be a challenge. The moon will be nearly 80% full during the Geminids’ peak, according to NASA.

Brightness from the moon can sometimes wash out meteors and make it harder to spot them zooming across the sky.
“This year, a waxing gibbous moon will be above the horizon during peak time for viewing,” EarthSky reported. “But it’ll set shortly afterwards, leaving the sky dark for watching meteors.”

The Geminids, as their name implies, appear to emanate from the bright constellation Gemini, the twins. To find Gemini in the Northern Hemisphere, look in the southwestern sky for the constellation Orion, the hunter, which is easy to spot by the three stars in the hunter’s “belt.”3 days ago