Geminids meteor shower to peak on Dec 13

Published December 12, 2013 9:41am

Stargazers may want to get their gear ready to watch what could be one of the last astronomical shows for the year: the Geminids meteor shower.

PAGASA officer-in-charge Vicente Malano said the shower will appear to radiate from the constellation of Gemini.

"Under a dark and cloudless sky and just after midnight of its peak activity, meteors or 'falling stars' can be seen at an average rate of 40 meteors per hour," he said.

Malano also noted a difference between the Geminids and other meteor showers, noting the Geminids meteors originate not from a comet, but from an asteroid (3200 Phaethon).

"Meteors from this shower are very rocky and gritty and slightly easier to see compared to the other showers," he said.

EarthSky.org said the Geminids will be radiating from near the bright stars Castor and Pollux in the constellation Gemini.

It said the Geminid meteor shower "is one of the finest meteors showers visible in either the Northern or the Southern Hemisphere."

"The meteors are plentiful, rivaling the August Perseids, with perhaps 50 to 100 meteors per hour visible at the peak. Plus Geminid meteors are often bright, so, if there’s a bright moon, many meteors may be able to overcome the harsh moonlight," it added.

EarthSky.org noted these meteors are often as good in the evening as in the hours between midnight and dawn.

But it also noted a bright waxing gibbous moon may interfere with the Geminids throughout most of the peak night.

"Your best bet is to watch on the mornings of December 13 and 14, from moonset until dawn,"it advised. — TJD, GMA News

Tags: weather, orionidsmeteorshower, meteorite