![]() ![]() These definitions worked well until a few decades ago. Through a telescope an asteroid appears star-like. Typically, an asteroid’s orbit is more circular than that of a comet. But when seen far from the sun, most comets appear star-like, because only the nucleus is observed.Īn asteroid is a rock. Seen through a telescope, a comet will show a coma, or head of the comet, as a nebulous patch of light around the nucleus, when it gets close to the sun. They revolve around the sun in elongated orbits, going close to the sun, then going far from the sun. Comets are typically lightweight, with a density slightly heavier than water. What’s the difference between a comet and an asteroid?Ī comet is defined as a dirty snowball, with a solid nucleus covered by a layer of ice which sublimates (turns from a solid to a gas) as the comet nears the sun. This differs from most meteor showers which are caused by comets, not asteroids. Geminid meteor shower parent cometįrom Don Machholz, who has discovered 12 comets … An asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon is responsible for the Geminids meteor shower. In 2022, a waning gibbous will wash out the meteors during the peak. local time (time on your clock for all parts of the globe). The meteors radiate from near the bright star Castor in the constellation Gemini, in the east on December evenings, highest around 2 a.m. Report a fireball (very bright meteor) to the American Meteor Society: it’s fun and easy! Watch the Geminid meteor shower this week. The meteors are plentiful, rivaling the August Perseids. They’re also visible, at lower rates, from the Southern Hemisphere. Note: The bold, white, bright Geminids give us one of the Northern Hemisphere’s best showers, in years when there’s no moon. So it’s a bright waning gibbous moon that’ll illuminate the sky during the 2022 Geminid meteor peak.Įxpected meteors at peak, under ideal conditions: Under a dark sky with no moon, you might catch 120 Geminid meteors per hour. Nearest moon phase: In 2022, last quarter moon falls on December 16. ![]() ![]() Radiant: Rises in mid-evening, highest around 2 a.m. Overall duration of shower: November 19 to December 24. One option is to try watching in moonlight on the nights of December 13 and 14. The moon will rise slightly later on December 14. When to watch: The moon will illuminate the sky from late evening on, on the evening of December 13. Predicted peak: is predicted* for December 14, 2022, at 13 UTC. ![]()
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