Every year since the civil war the Geminids have shown up in mid December. This picture shows last years Geminid meteor photographed by Christopher Colley of Lombard, Illinois. This year fog may block your view of the shower which peaks Thursday night into Friday's sunrise.You can expect around 120 to 160 meteors per minute with an increase in frequency by sunrise. Start looking anytime after 10 pm towards the east or northeast. Shift your eyes west by sunrise.
The streaks of light may appear yellow since the Geminid's are caused by an asteroid and not like your typical icy dusty comet. The asteroid is about 3 miles wide and will pass about 2 million miles from Earth. An asteroid this size was responsible for wiping out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.
Here is a NASA map of the sky to help you look in the correct direction.
Here is a NASA map of the sky to help you look in the correct direction.
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