Why the Geminids stand apart

Unlike most other meteor showers, the Geminids are not associated with a comet, but with an asteroid named 3200 Phaethon. The asteroid takes about 1.4 years to orbit the Sun.

Geminid’s parent — 3200 Phaethon — is a ‘rock comet’. Every December, the Earth crosses the orbital path of an object called 3200 Phaethon, a mysterious body that is sometimes referred to as a rock comet. The debris shed by 3200 Phaethon crashes into Earth’s upper atmosphere at some 130,000km/h to vaporise as colourful Geminid meteors.

This 200-year-old Geminid meteor shower according to known records was first recorded in 1833 from a riverboat on the Mississippi River and still continues to this day.

Observers say it’s growing stronger because Jupiter’s gravity has tugged the stream of particles from the shower’s source closer to Earth over the centuries.

Where you can watch it

Dubai Astronomy Group is organising a paid event on December 14 called ‘Geminids Meteor Shower camp’ where people can view and learn more about this meteor shower, other celestial bodies and deep sky objects with telescope and laser marking of stars.

To attend the event, people can register themselves through

www.Q-tickets.com.