What is Geminid Meteor Shower and When Can We See It?

Tap to Read ➤ Rajesh Soni

This year the ‘King of the meteor showers - Geminid " will be seen from 13-15 December giving stargazers a spectacular opportunity to watch shooting stars.

The Origin of Geminid

Geminid meteor is composed of debris left by the asteroid , 3200 Phaethon. Every year in mid-December, when the Earth runs into a stream of debris from 3200 Phaethon, we see the Geminid meteor shower. This celestial event is a result of the dust that burns up in the Earth's atmosphere thus creating meteors.

When Can This Be Witnessed?

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According to NASA Meteor expert Bill Cooke, this year the shower will peak on 13-15 December 2019; and the best time to see Geminids is about 2 a.m. in your local time zone.

Interesting facts about Geminids

Geminid’s parent object is 3200 Phaethon. The Geminids were first discovered in 1862 and its the parent, 3200 Phaethon was identified in 1983. The diameter of Phaethon is about 5 km and it is the third largest near-Earth asteroid. 3200 Phaethon asteroid completes an orbit around the sun in 1.4 years.