Watch the Geminids meteor shower this Friday – Astronomy Magazine
A Geminid meteor streaks above the snowy landscape in 2012.
Sergiu Bacioiu (Flickr)
Since the mid-1800s, the Geminids meteor shower has been lighting up the sky each year. And this year is no exception — the Geminids are predicted to peak overnight from Friday, December 13, to Saturday, December 14.
Although that peak will occur alongside a bright Moon just two days past full, sky-gazers under clear, dark skies can still expect to see as many as 20 bright meteors per hour.
And if your skies are cloudy — or it’s simply too cold to comfortably step outside — consider checking out a livestream of the whole event. Amateur astronomer David Brewer will be livestreaming the entire shower in 4K from Denver, Colorado, beginning at 8:00 P.M. MST, continuing through the shower’s official peak at 1:00 A.M. MST and ending about 4:00 A.M. MST. Brewer will be monitoring the livestream, which features a live chat option, and pinning the timestamps of noted bright meteors as they occur.
The livestream will be broken into two YouTube segments, the first beginning at 8:00 P.M. MST and the second beginning at 12:00 A.M. MST. You can watch the livestreams below or click through to view them on YouTube to participate in the chat.
Stream 1, beginning December 13 at 8 P.M. MST
Stream 2, beginning December 14 at 12 A.M. MST
The livestream will be archived afterward for viewing at any time. Brewer recommends viewing the livestream window in full screen mode for the best observing experience.
