If seeing shooting stars in real life is on your bucket list, this is your best shot! One of the most impressive and reliable meteor showers of the celestial calendar is set to light up Australian skies in mid-December, also marking your second last chance to wish upon a shooting star in 2024. Keen to catch the fast and furious space show? Here’s everything you need to know about watching the Geminid meteor shower in Australia.
What is the Geminid meteor shower?
While most meteor showers are the result of a comet, the Geminids come from debris shed by 3,200 Phaethon, a five-kilometre-wide asteroid that discards matter as it moves past Earth in space.
It first appeared in the mid-1800s, but it wasn't considered particularly notable at the time, offering just ten to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. The Geminids have grown considerably in scale across the centuries, today offering upwards of 150 meteors per hour in perfect conditions. This particular starry display is considered one of the best and most reliable annual meteor showers, according to NASA.
When is the best time to see the Geminid meteor shower?
This year, the Geminids will be gracing our skies from December 4 to 20. However, mark your calendars for December 13 to 15 – that’s when the meteor shower is set to peak in Australia, with up to 150 meteors streaking across the sky every hour.
The Geminids are predicted to peak in Perth, Darwin and Adelaide on the night between Friday, December 13 and Saturday, December 14. Meanwhile, stargazers in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Hobart and Canberra can catch the peak the following night, from Saturday, December 14 into Sunday, December 15. For all cities, the prime viewing window will be in the hours just before dawn.
How to see the Geminid meteor shower?
Meteor visibility varies based on factors like moonlight and weather, and with the moon shining brightly over the weekend of December 14, it might wash out all but the brightest meteors. Still, the experts at Blue Mountains Stargazing estimate we’ll catch around 50 shooting stars per hour – in our opinion, that’s still worth getting out of bed for.
You should be able to see the brightest Geminids with the naked eye. Find a dark place away from artificial light, give your eyes at least 20 minutes to adjust and bring plenty of patience. You can find our top spots in this handy guide to the best stargazing spots near Australia.