Geminid meteor shower is peaking, best time to see fireballs

The Geminid meteor shower is peaking this weekend, providing a little pre-holiday skywatching fun. In years with good conditions and little cloud cover, the Geminids can be one of the best sky shows of the year with up to 120 meteors visible in a single hour.

That probably won’t be the case this year. This weekend’s full moon will make the Geminids seem fainter. But you should still be able to see the brightest streaks.

And they’ll hang around until Christmas Eve, their numbers dropping a bit every night between now and Dec. 24.

NASA bloggers gave a shout-out to the Geminids this week: “This year, the nearly full Moon will wash out the fainter meteors on the peak night. Still, the Geminids are known for bright meteors, and it’s common to spot their shooting stars up to a week before the peak. If you’re up before dawn that week, it’s worth looking up, just in case you spot a speck of dust from space streaking through the morning sky.”

Are you a night owl? The best time to see the Geminids is around 2 a.m. If you see a fireball – a really bright meteor – you can report it on the website here.

For more Geminid facts, check out this cool article on EarthSky.