Geminids 2017 Lit Up The Sky

All eyes scanned the north-eastern horizon. It was easy to look out as the Geminids meteor streaked past to the right of the Orion. With its three stars in alignment, the constellation of Orion is the easiest to recognise in the night sky.

The Geminids are a meteor shower that occurs in December every year. The best night to see the shower is Dec. 13 into the early hours of Dec. 14. The Geminid meteor shower is caused by a stream of debris left by the asteroid, 3200 Phaethon. When the Earth passes through the trails of dust every December left by 3200 Phaethon, we see the Geminid meteor shower as the dust (meteoroids) burn up in Earth’s atmosphere creating meteors.

When the Geminids first appeared in the early 19th century, shortly before the U.S. Civil War, the shower was weak and attracted little attention. There was no hint that it would ever become a major display.

Because they are usually bright, many people say Geminid meteors show color. In addition to glowing white, they have been described as appearing yellow, green, or blue.

This magical show of light through space must not be missed.

These meteor showers are visible from countries all around the world, including India. If you missed them yesterday, wait only for a year as the Geminids pay a visit again next December.

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