What you need to know: Gemini Meteor Shower 2020 | Astronomy Essentials


Long, straight bright length in the dark sky above the mountains near the black.

John Ashley caught this wonderful semantic meteorite in December 2018 in Glacier National Park, Montana. You are likely to catch a groundbreaker in the evening hours. Watch out for them! John said this lasted about 4 seconds and a glowing smoke left the train behind. He commented: “The meteor dusted up on Dusty Star Mountain or in blackfit over ‘Izika-Kakatosi’, the ‘smoking star.’ Translates into. ” Nice! Nikon D750, Rockinon 24mm lens 1. F1.4, 30 seconds, ISO 3200. Thank you, John!

The Geminid meteor shower – always the highlight of the meteor year – is expected to peak in 2020 on Sunday, December 13-14 (Monday through Sunday evening 20). You will probably see a good spread of meteors the night before (December 11-12 and December 12-13). And you can probably catch a Gemini meteor at any time this week, as the fountain reaches its peak. Geminids are a reliable fountain if you look at the best time of night, centered around 2pm for all parts of the world, and if you look in the dark. Meteors are bold, white and fast. This fountain favors the northern hemisphere of the earth, but it is also visible from the southern hemisphere. Fantastic Comet The main part of this fountain is called 3200 Fathon.

On a dark night, near the summit, you can often catch 50 or more meteors in an hour. On the best night for Gemini people, it is possible to see 150 meteors per hour… which will happen this year, with this year’s Gemini Meteor Shower with a moon-free sky. The new moon arrives on December 14, 2020. The day before that date, you will see a waning crescent moon. And – on December 11, 12 and 13, 2020 – after a meteor-watching night, the thin lunar crescent-shaped and shining planet Venus will rise in or near your eastern sky.

What a way to cap a meteor-watching night!

Earthsyki’s lunar calendar shows the daily lunar phase in 2021. Place your order before you go! Makes a great gift.

Sky Chart: The lunar eclipse is connected to Venus in the morning sky.

In 2020, the 2 brightest orbs of the night – the Moon and Venus – will be rising in the east as the next day darkness gives way to the morning light on 11, 12 and 13 December. What a wonderful sight to see after a meteor night. Watching!

Why is Gemini best around 2 in the morning? That’s because when the radiant point of the fountain – the point in our sky from which the meteors spread – is the highest in the sky. As a general rule, the more Gemini constellation stars in your sky, the more meteors you are likely to see.

The cheerful point of these Geminids is almost identical to the bright star castor in Gemini. It’s a chance, of course, that the castor is about light૨ light-years away, when these meteors burn in the upper atmosphere, about miles0 miles (100 km) from Earth’s surface.

Castor is remarkably another bright star, Gemini’s Golden Star Plus. It’s fun to find them, but you don’t is needed To find the cheerful point of the meteor shower to see these meteors.

Instead, meteors appear in all parts of the sky in the annual rains. It is also possible to have your back in the Gemini constellation and watch the Gemini meteor fly from there.

Straight white shades in the black sky, labeled with many stars.

Martin Marthadinata, from Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, caught the Geminid fireball in 2014, coming from a bright shower point near Star Castor.

Gemini constellation with radial arrows near the star castor.

Gemini spreads near the brightest star Castor in the constellation of Jenny, east of December evening, around 2 a.m. for all parts of the world. Learn more about the brilliant points of Geminids.

6 tips for meteor-watchers.

1. The most important thing, if you are serious about seeing meteors, is a dark, open sky.

2. Look for all parts of the world at 2am (or later) at night peak.

When. When you see meteors, it’s best to keep a mate with you. Then the two of you can look in different directions. When one sees, call “Meteor!” This technique will let you see more meteors than a person watching alone.

Yourself. Don’t forget to give yourself at least an hour to observe. It takes about 20 minutes for your eyes to adapt to the dark.

Aware. Keep in mind that meteors often come to a screeching halt, intersecting Lullo.

6. Special equipment? Nothing is needed. Maybe bring a sleeping bag to keep warm. A hot drink, and a thermos with snacks are always welcome. Plan to spread the hammock on the ground, linen chair, lawn mower or back in the blanket. Go back to sleep comfortably, and look up. Meteors will appear in all parts of the sky.

Black sky with blurred dots at the top and a thin red streak near the bottom.

Jim Livingston in Custer, South Dakota, on December 9, 2018, caught a comet 46P / Virtanen in the same field as the streaming meteor. See more images of comet Vertenen. Canon 60D, Skywatch 8 ″ reflector, CGX mount. Thanks, Jim!

Earthgrazers are possible in the evening hours. Well, we said you’ll probably see the most meteors at night centered around 2:22 p.m.

But the evening hours Is Best time to try to catch an Earthground meteor.

An earthworm is a slow-moving, long-standing meteor that travels horizontally through the sky.

Earthgrazers are rarely seen, but prove to be especially memorable, if you should be lucky enough to catch someone.

String of orange with multiple large yellow dots with it in the dark blue sky.

Painting of 1860 g earth ndgrazer fireb ball by Frederick Edwin Church. Image by Wikimedia Commons.

Gemini’s parents – the 3200 Phaethon – are a “rock comet”. Every year in December, our planet Earth crosses the orbit of an object object named 3200 Phaethon, a mysterious body, sometimes referred to as Comet. In order to evaporate as colorful Gemini meteors, debris shed by 00,800 feathers crashes into the Earth’s upper atmosphere at speeds of about 1,000,000 miles (1,000,000 km) per hour.

1.43 period Over a period of years, this small-mile (- kilometer) wide asteroid-type object rotates very close to the Sun (within one-third of Mercury’s distance), where Junker intense thermal fracturing causes it to shed more shade. Debris in its orbital stream.

There was a big excitement about 3200 Phaeths in 2017, as the object was very close around the top night of the Gemini meteor shower. It traveled within 6.4 million miles (10.3 million km, 26 lunar distances) on December 16, 2017. In 2019, 3200 fathons are far away. Visit Sky Live to learn the current distance of 3200 feathers from Earth and the Sun.

Read more: Mysterious Rock Comet 3200 Fathon

Animated image of rotating round gray object objects.

Radar images of the near-Earth asteroid eid 3200 phaeton produced by astronomers at the Arecibo Observatory on December 17, 2017.

Bottom line: Annual Gemini Meteor Shower Peaks of December 13-14, 2020 (Sunday evening to Monday morning). But the previous week night should also provide the right number of meteors. These colored meteors are bright, so on a dark night, you can easily find 50 or more meteors in an hour.

Bruce McClure

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