Stargazers should mark the “best” meteor shower of the year, according to NASA, on their calendars — the Geminids, which can soon be seen.
The showers began Saturday, but will peak on the evening and dawn of Dec. 13-14, according to earthsky.org. They end on Dec. 17.
If it’s dark, you could see as many as 50 flaming meteors cross the sky per hour, with the most around 2 a.m.
The Geminids are the “strongest meteor shower of the year,” according to NASA’s stargazing blog.
They’re “active … when Earth passes through a massive trail of dusty debris shed by a weird, rocky object named 3200 Phaethon. The dust and grit burn up when they run into Earth’s atmosphere in a flurry of ‘shooting stars,’” according to the agency.
NASA recommends finding the “darkest place you can” away from the city and letting your eyes adjust for half an hour. “Avoid looking at your cell phone, as it will mess up your night vision,” the agency adds. “Lie flat on your back and look straight up, taking in as much sky as possible. You will soon start to see Geminid meteors.”
For those who can’t escape the city, NASA will stream the peak of the shower on its “meteor watch” Facebook page.