With Christmas around the corner, streets all over the UK are twinkling with lights of green, red, blue and yellow. This weekend, our night sky will be joining in on the festive illuminations.
The Geminid meteor shower, one of the largest, brightest and most colourful celestial shows of the year, is due to peak on Saturday night (December 14). So, get ready to wish on a shooting star or two to mark the end of the year.
Here’s how you can catch the stunning Geminid meteor shower in action this weekend.
What is the Geminid meteor shower?
Most meteor showers are made up of debris from comets, but the Geminids is different in that it is made up of bits and pieces from an asteroid. As the debris hits the Earth’s atmosphere, it burns up and creates impressive streaks of lights that we can see from down here.
At its peak, the Geminid shower can produce up to 150 meteors per hour, entering our atmosphere at speeds of up to 70km per second.
What makes the meteor shower green?
This shower is particularly exciting as some of the meteors will have streaks of yellow, green, red or blue. The vibrant colour comes from the presence of elements such as sodium or calcium in the debris.
When will the Geminid meteor shower be visible in the UK?
The shower will peak this weekend (December 14-15). Experts say that the prime time to watch the spectacle will be around 2am on December 15, but you could start spotting shooting star from mid-evening on December 14.
The shower will be visible with the naked eye, so there’s no need for any special equipment. A chair, wool blanket and flask of hot tea could be handy though!
Where’s best to watch the Geminid meteor shower?
Somewhere with minimal light pollution, clear weather conditions and an unobstructed view of the sky is always best. For some inspiration, take a look at our list of the best stargazing spots in the country.
What is the weather forecast?
The Met Office is forecasting some rain for northern and western parts of the UK on the weekend but says that cloud and rain will clear in the south.
When is the next meteor shower?
The next meteor shower (and final one of the year) is the Ursids, which reaches its maximum and be at its most visible on December 23.
Did you see that the northern lights will be much more frequent in the south of England from now on?
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