Bundle up and look to the sky: It’s time for one of the best meteor showers of the year | 24CA News

The climate is colder and the nights are longer, which makes it a good time to search for “shooting stars.”

And this week is the height of the annual Geminid meteor bathe, among the finest reveals of the 12 months.

A significant meteor bathe happens almost each month, the place we are able to count on anyplace from 5 to 150 meteors an hour, beneath ultimate circumstances. 

And that is what makes the Geminids so particular: in ultimate circumstances, beneath darkish skies, there could possibly be upward of 100 to 150 meteors an hour.

We get meteor showers when Earth passes by way of a path of leftover particles shed from a comet or asteroid. In the case of the Geminids, we’re passing by way of that of an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon. 

“The Geminids are an old and reliable meteor shower,” stated Paul Wiegert, a professor of physics and astronomy at Western University in London, Ont.

“Its unusual consistency in following the same path is why the Geminids perform every year, as its trail of pebbles and rocks is now rather densely packed.”

Try this interactive map displaying how Earth passes by way of the meteor bathe:

The grain-sized particles — or typically bigger — enter our environment and fritter away, producing the lengthy, shiny streak we see within the sky.

And the Geminids are additionally recognized for producing shiny fireballs, which is one more reason it is among the most anticipated showers of the 12 months.

How and when to see it

The bathe will likely be at its peak on Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning, although you will doubtless see some meteors within the nights earlier than and after. 

While the radiant — or the placement from which the meteors seem to originate — is within the constellation Gemini, you needn’t look in that path to see some. 

“The meteors will seem to shoot out of the constellation Gemini (hence the name) but could streak across pretty much any part of the sky,” Wiegert stated. “So if you can find a dark place, with a good view of the sky in any direction, you could get a good view of the Geminids.”

The constellation will rise within the east a while after 7:30 p.m. native time. While it is best to search for meteors when the constellation is overhead, viewers could possibly spot some “earth-grazers” — shiny, slow-moving meteors that cross the sky horizontally earlier within the night.

In order to get essentially the most out of your viewing expertise, discover a darkish website, ideally out of town or city. If you possibly can’t get away, simply discover the darkest place you possibly can.

Once you are exterior, enable a while to your eyes to develop into tailored to the darkish, ideally a half-hour or so. Stay away out of your telephone — its gentle can hinder your eyes from adapting to the darkish. And bear in mind to maintain heat.

If the clouds keep away, this 12 months will doubtless present a great present, because the moon will solely be illuminated roughly one per cent and will not wash out a number of the dimmer meteors. 

And whereas it might be tempting to look away, simply bear in mind: the longer your eyes are on the sky, the extra meteors you will note.

While you doubtless will not see 100 to 150 meteors an hour — except you are one of many few who lives beneath ultimate circumstances — if the sky is clear, you will be in for a great present.