Geminids


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Related to Geminids: Leonids, Orionids, Perseid meteor shower

Geminids:

see meteor showermeteor shower,
increase in the number of meteors observed in a particular part of the sky. The trails of the meteors of a meteor shower all appear to be traceable back to a single point in the sky, known as the radiant point, or radiant.
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Geminids

(jem -ă-nidz) An important and active winter meteor shower that maximizes on Dec. 13, meteors being visible between Dec. 7 and Dec. 15. The shower has a radiant of RA 113°, dec +32°, and a zenithal hourly rate of about 80; the meteoroids hit the atmosphere with a velocity of about 36 km s–1. The orbit of the meteoroid stream has a low semimajor axis (1.5 AU) and matches almost exactly the orbit of the Apollo asteroid Phaethon. The shower has yielded a fairly constant rate during the last century. The meteoroids have a higher density than normal because the parent of the shower is an asteroid rather than a comet.

Geminids

 

a meteor shower with a radiant in the Gemini constellation. The shower is first observable in the first half of December and reaches its maximum on December 13-14. The most active of the annually occurring meteor showers, it has a very short period of revolution around the sun (1.7 years). The Geminids were first observed in 1862.

Geminids

[′jem·ə·nidz]
(astronomy)
A meteor shower that reaches maximum about December 13.
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References in periodicals archive ?
If you don't see the asteroid itself, be sure to look out for the Geminid meteor shower, which is set to provide a spectacular show over the course of 10 nights in December, with as many as 100 shooting stars every hour.
Potentially hazardous three-mile-wide asteroid 3200 Phaethon to skim Earth TODAY in closest pass since 1974; The asteroid is widely thought to be the parent body for the Geminids meteor shower
On an ordinary winter night there might be around 5 to 10 meteors visible in the sky but during a Geminid meteor shower there are more than 200.
Geminid meteor shower 2017: See these amazing images taken by Ash Vale meteorologist; The shower is considered one of the best to watch among stargazers, especially when the skies are clear
It is called the Geminid shower because the meteors appear to come from the part of the sky associated with the constellation Gemini, although really it is the asteroid 3200 Phaethon that causes them.
Time to look up for dazzling meteor shower
The Geminid meteor shower, which returns every December, is predicted to be one of the most dazzling ever.
Dazzling display
The Geminid meteor shower can be annually observed between December 4 and December 16, with its peak activity being around December 14.
Geminids meteors peak December 13-14
December 21 and 22 - Ursids THE Geminids owes its name to the constellation Gemini while the Ursids get their name from the constellation Ursa Minor.
Reach for the stars! Stargazers in Coventry and Warwickshire should be in heaven this year. 2016 sees plenty of great events - from full moons and new moons, to meteor showers and planet conjunctions. Reporter JAMES RODGER rounds up the best of this year's celestial activities..
The Perseids and Geminids, each of which can deliver roughly 100 meteors per hour, are the two most powerful.
Celestial showers: catch these displays of "falling stars" throughout the year
And as they tend to be bright, Geminids are relatively easy to observe.
It's simple to track this giant of space
David Moore, editor of Astronomy Ireland Magazine, said: "Although the Geminids peak on Sunday and Monday nights the rates build from December 7 and then decline until December 17.
Look up..as meteors fill the night sky
YESTERDAY was the start of a 10-day astronomical spectacular called the Geminid meteor shower that sees 100 shooting stars per hour zapping across the sky.
Meteors in Merseyside; NEWS WIRE
STARGAZERS are in for a treat this month when the Geminids meteor shower takes place.
Starry showers to light up night sky
At their height, the Geminids could produce between 50 and 100 shooting stars every minute.
Cosmic fireworks set to explode in the night skies ABOVEWALES; Producing between 50 and 100 shooting stars every hour, tonight's Geminid meteor shower could be stunning, reports John von Radowitz

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