Geminid Meteor Shower 2012

2012 Geminid Meteor Shower, December 13-15th 2012

As I always say with all these astral phenomena, unless you've been living on the moon, you know that something is going on in the sky. This week, it’s the Geminid Meteor Shower, which according to all reports, is particularly strong and visible this year - perhaps even more so than its predecessors, the Leonid and then Orionid Showers. In fact, according to all of my internet sources – the Geminid Meteor Shower may indeed be the best meteor shower of all of 2012! (Information here, here, here, and here).

The Geminid Meteor Shower will be peaking on the night of December 13, 2012, and the early morning hours of December 14, 2012. According to Earthsky.org, and various other sources, the best time to view the Geminids is from midnight to two (2) a.m., irrespective of where you are located. For a list of tips on how to view the Geminids, check out Earthsky’s page HERE. And, if you don’t feel like staying up late – or waking up early on Thursday night, the good news is that the shower will linger into the evening of Friday, December 14, 2012, and the early morning hours of December 15, 2012.

It’s worth noting that the shower should be particularly visible this year, as it coincides with a new moon, which will set well before the shower is at its peak time, so if you have clear skies and if you’re away from any sources of light pollution (city lights), you should be able to see quite a few meteors. As a general rule, the Geminid Shower is always my favorite meteor shower of the year, and since the world is ending just a week later, it is your last chance to view a meteor shower before whatever the Mayans did or did not predict happens! And, if you're interested in science, help NASA out, and check out this app here to record what meteors you can. Also, if you’re a hard science believer like me, here’s a solid list of reasons why 2012 isn’t real, and why I’ll be here blogging well after the world purportedly ends next week – but until then – keep your eye on the sky!