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spurts and are interspersed with lulls. Remember, it can take as long as twenty minutes for your eyes to fully dark-adapt, so give yourself at least an hour of observing time. Simply srawl out on a reclining lawn chair and enjoy the show.
• Although Thursday night until Friday morning will probably be the best for watching the Geminid meteors, tonight should provide plenty of meteor activity as well.
• Where do the meteors come from? Although meteors are sometimes called 'shooting stars,' they have nothing to do with stars. Instead, they are strictly a solar system phenomenon. Around this time every year, our planet Earth crosses the orbital path of a mysterious object called 3200 Phaethon, which might be an asteroid or a burnt-out comet orbiting our sun. Debris from this object burns up in the Earth's upper atmosphere to give us the annual Geminid meteor shower. The moderately fast Geminids slice through the Earth's atmosphere at some 35 kilometers - or 22 miles - per second.
• How high up are meteors when they begin to glow?
• The Geminid meteors are named for the constellation Gemini the Twins, because the radiant point of this shower lies in front Gemini, closely aligning with the bright star Castor. If you trace all the Geminid meteors backward, they all appear to originated from this constellation.
• Gemini? Here's your constellation
• But you don't need to know the constellation Gemini to see the meteor shower. The Geminid meteors will streak across all parts of the heavens from late night until dawn. Find a dark sky to watch this seasonal attraction, for the Geminid shower is sure to add to the holiday lighting these next few nights.