Story Created:
Dec 10, 2010 at 5:57 PM EDT
Story Updated:
Dec 10, 2010 at 5:57 PM EDT
Early next week, the Geminid meteor shower will make its annual appearance, just in time for Christmas.
Stay tuned for nature's coming attraction.
Early next week, the Geminid meteor shower will make its annual appearance, just in time for Christmas. Astronomers consider it the best meteor shower of the year, with more than 100 meteors streaking through the night sky every hour. The peak of the meteor shower will occur early Tuesday, between midnight and sunrise local time. The show will be best in the Northern Hemisphere, easily visible with the naked eye.
The Geminids are actually rocky celestial leftovers. Every December, Earth passes through this stream of debris from the asteroid-like object named 3200 Phaethon. The meteors, or shooting stars, appear to fall from the Gemini constellation, thus their name.
Most Popular