Geminid meteor shower activity begins

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Emirates Astronomical Society, and member of the Arab Union for Space and Astronomy, Ibrahim Al-Jarwan, confirmed the start of the activity of the Geminid meteor shower, which is active during the period between December 4 and 20, and reaches its peak on the night of December 13 and 14, when up to 150 meteors fall on the Earth per hour in a cloudy night sky, indicating that this shower can be monitored in the country’s sky.
Al-Jarwan said: “This year, the scene will be very special because the peak of the night will be in a dark sky where the moonlight is waning, and a 28% illuminated waning crescent will rise in the east, two hours after midnight,” noting that the period from 10 pm onwards is the ideal time for observing Geminid meteors.
Al-Jarwan explained that the Geminid meteor shower, in addition to being one of the few major meteor showers that are active before midnight, is often bright, slow-moving, and full of colors due to the presence of elements such as sodium and calcium in it.
He pointed out that the Geminid meteors originate from the rocky asteroid, called 3200 Phaethon, which has a diameter of about 5.8 kilometers and revolves around the sun every 1.4 years, which gives the meteors a denser composition.
He pointed out that the Geminid meteor shower is considered the best meteor shower of the year as it is the only one known to be caused by an asteroid and not a comet.