Stargazers, be sure to look up at the sky tonight to catch the peak of the Geminid meteor shower. With the combination of clear skies and a recent new moon, it could put on quite a show in Cincinnati.
The Geminid meteor shower, which began Nov. 19 and will continue until Dec. 24, is a result of debris from the asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which crosses Earth’s orbit every mid-December. The peak of the meteor shower goes from Wednesday night into Thursday morning and can be seen all over the world.
While the zenithal hourly rate (how many meteors a single observer could see at the shower’s peak in perfect conditions) for this shower is 120 meteors per hour, it’s likely you won’t see that many. However, with Cincinnati’s weather predicted to provide clear skies tonight, along with a new moon on Dec. 12 leading to darker skies, stargazers could see up to dozens of meteors in places with little light pollution and a clear view of the sky.
The best time to catch this natural light show is around 2 a.m., according to EarthSky.org, when the meteor shower hits its radiant point, or the point in the sky from where the meteors seem to radiate, but you could catch meteors even earlier.
EarthSky.org offers these tips to make the most of your Geminid meteor shower viewing:
- Watch the shower with a buddy so you can look for meteors in different directions.
- Keep in mind that meteors often come in spurts followed by lulls.
- Bring what you need to keep warm.
- Plan on lying on the ground for the best views. Meteors will appear in all parts of the sky.
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This article appears in Dec 13-26, 2023.
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