Geminid Meteor Shower Tonight

Bright, green-colored fireballs will be viewable from Earth beginning Monday as part of the annual Geminid meteor shower. The Geminids are orbital debris that come from a celestial object known as 3200 Phaethon, which astronomers believe to be an extinct comet. An extinct comet is one that has expelled most of its volatile ice and has little left to form a tail. Every year the Geminids make an appearance, getting up to 29 miles above the Earth’s surface before burning up.

According to NASA, the Geminids are denser than other meteor showers, which is what allows them to come so close to Earth. This year’s shower is expected to bring 30-40 meteors per hour. The Geminids are best viewed by observers in the Northern Hemisphere, and NASA expects that this year the moon will be almost 80 percent full during the peak of the Geminids. That’s not considered ideal viewing conditions, but the moon is expected to set around 2 a.m., which leaves a couple of hours for meteor watching until twilight. “Rich in green-colored fireballs, the Geminids are the only shower I will brave cold December nights to see,” said Bill Cooke, lead for NASA’s Meteoroid Environment Office. The Geminids can be viewed beginning Monday night and will remain active until Dec. 17. EarthSky recommends watching for the shower around 2 a.m. local time from a dark sky location, a global look at the best stargazing locations across the US. NASA recommends picking a spot away from bright lights and lying on your back and simply looking up. Meteors can generally be seen all over the sky, but observing in a city with lots of light pollution can make it more difficult to see Geminids. NASA will also live broadcast the shower’s peak Monday and Tuesday through a meteor shower camera positioned at the space agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama.