GEMINIDS OF METEOR SHOWER

1.Context

This year, the Geminids peaked around December 13-14, when, with a clear sky and away from bright city lights, one can watch scores of meteors streak across the sky

2.Meteors

When meteoroids enter Earth’s atmosphere (or that of another planet, like Mars) at high speed and burn up, the fireballs or “shooting stars” are called meteors.

2.1..Meteoroids

 They are objects in space that range in size from dust grains to small asteroids. They are like space rocks.

4.Causes Of Meteor Showers

• Meteors are usually fragments of comets. As they enter the Earth’s atmosphere at high speed, they burn up, creating a spectacular “shower”.
• A meteor shower occurs when the Earth passes through the trail of debris left by a comet or asteroid.  
• Meteors are bits of rocks and ice ejected from comets as they move in their orbits about the sun.
•  Meteor showers get their names from the constellation in where their radiant is located. Perseids come from Perseus, hence the name Perseids.  
• Comets continuously eject material with each passage around the sun; this replenishes the shower meteoroids.  
• Approximately 30 meteor showers occur each year that are visible to observers on Earth. Some of these showers have been around longer than 100 years.
• Meteors are sometimes observed with red, yellow, or green trails. The colors are caused by the ionization of molecules - like oxygen which appears to be green.

5.Geminids

 These are one of the best and most reliable annual meteor showers. If their peak coincides with the new moon, and if the weather is clear, the Geminids can produce approximately 100-150 meteors per hour for viewing. This year, however, the moon is bright, so only 30-40 meteors per hour will be visible in the Northern Hemisphere.

6.Difference Between Meteors And Geminids

The Geminids are unique because, unlike most meteor showers, they originate not from a comet, but from an asteroid.

7.Causes Of Geminids

• The 3200 Phaethon was discovered on October 11, 1983. It is named after the Greek mythology character Phaethon, son of the Sun God Helios.
• It takes 1.4 years to complete one round of the Sun. As the 3200 Phaethon moves close to the Sun while orbiting it, the rocks on its surface heat up and break off.
• When the Earth passes through the trail of this debris, the Geminids are caused.

8.Why They Are Called Geminids

• The name comes from the constellation Gemini, from whose location in the sky the meteor shower appears to originate.
• According to NASA "The constellation for which a meteor shower is named only serves to aid viewers in determining which shower they are viewing on a given night".
• The constellation is not the source of the meteors and Also, one should not look only to the constellation of Gemini to view the Geminids – they are visible throughout the night.