Tonight: Geminid meteor shower to glisten in December sky
Experts say it’s the best meteor shower of 2022 and could put on an impressive performance for evening stargazers, but widespread clouds and wintry weather could be problematic for onlookers on Tuesday night.
Get ready for the best meteor shower of the year, the Geminids, on the night of Dec. 13-14. They’re known to produce as many as 150 meteors per hour.
Shooting stars will dash across the chilly December sky as one of the top astronomy events of 2022 puts on an impressive performance in the heavens.
The Geminids will peak on Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning, and unlike some meteor showers that can only be viewed in the hours before sunrise, the Geminids are active all night long. The annual event often boasts over 100 meteors per hour when viewed from dark locations, but onlookers this year should curb expectations due to the moon.
"A good strategy this year may be to observe between dusk and moon rise on the evening of December 13," the American Meteor Society (AMS) explained, adding that the moon will be rising around 10 p.m., local time, on peak night. Moonlight will wash out many of the dimmer meteors, reducing the number of shooting stars that can be observed.
With Tuesday evening projected to offer the best viewing conditions, this year's edition of the Geminids will favor younger stargazers who cannot stay up late on a school night.
A tree in the prairie under the Geminid meteor shower. (iStock / Getty Images Plus/Li Xiang)
Meteors during the evening hours could be "Earthgrazers," or long-lasting meteors that streak across a large area of the sky. As the night transpires and the shower's radiant point, located near the Gemini constellation, rises higher in the sky, there will be fewer Earthgrazers and more typical meteors that are short, bright flickers in the heavens.
"You do not have to face the constellation of Gemini to see them," the AMS said, adding that "meteors can appear in any part of the sky."
Additionally, the Geminids could feature meteors of various colors, but the brightest ones tend to be green.
Unfortunately for those hoping to glimpse a shooting star, the weather in mid-December can be challenging for stargazers as it often features widespread clouds across most of North America. This year will be no different.
AccuWeather meteorologists are predicting mainly cloudy conditions from the Gulf Coast to the Great Lakes and westward across the Rocky Mountains. Clouds will also obscure the sky across most of the Canadian province of Ontario and the Canadian Prairies.
The best weather is predicted along the coast of the mid-Atlantic and New England, as well as along the West Coast although light pollution from major cities could interfere with the ability to spot meteors. Excellent viewing conditions are in the forecast for most of Arizona and New Mexico deserts, as well as parts of the southern Plains in the wake of Tuesday's severe weather.
If cloudy conditions prevail on Tuesday night, folks can try to look for meteors on Wednesday night, Thursday night and again on Friday night if the weather improves.
Overall in the United States, interior portions of New England and rural portions of the Desert Southwest look to provide the best viewing conditions. In these places, there will be an ideal combination of little cloud cover and low light pollution.
The number of meteors visible on the nights following the peak of the Geminids will not feature as many meteors, but hourly rates will be higher than many nights throughout the year.
A week after the Geminids peak, the Ursid meteor shower will culminate on the winter solstice, the longest night of the year.
This event often goes overlooked following the hyperactive Geminids, but stargazers outside on Wednesday, Dec. 21, into the morning of Thursday, Dec. 22, could spot around a dozen shooting stars per hour.
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