Geminid Meteor Shower: Hundreds of Meteors will Light Up the Night Sky

The Geminids are an annual meteor shower caused by the "Rock Comet" 3200 Phaethon. Forecasters expect Geminid meteor rates to top 100 per hour when the shower peaks on the nights of Dec. 13th and 14th.

They hit Earth's atmosphere traveling ~35 km/s (78,000 mph) and typically disintegrate about 80 km (50 miles) above Earth's surface. Moonlight interferes but these meteors are bright.

Watch on the evening of December 13 until dawn December 14. The nights before and after might be good as well. Observers in both hemispheres could see dozens of Geminids despite the glare of a bright full Moon. The best time to look is during the hours after local midnight.

http://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/geminids.html http://earthsky.org/?p=3797 http://www.spaceweather.com/

Clips, images credit: ESO, ESA/HUBBLE & NASA/JPL