Seek the darkness and gather your wishes, my baby: the annual Geminid meteor shower is upon us.
The Geminids are the best and most reliable of the annual meteor showers, and this year they almost coincide with the new moon in Sagittarius, meaning the sky will be near darkest and optimally ready to see the star show.
Under these near-perfect lunar conditions and during peak hours, up to 120 meteors will be visible every hour.
While most meteors appear colorless or white, the Geminids throw themselves into the sky with yellow or greenish hues, enhancing the viewing experience.
What are meteors?
Meteors are born from comet particles and asteroid debris. As this glorious detritus orbits the sun it leaves a trail in its wake.
As Earth passes through this trail, fragments of space dust collide with our atmosphere and burn themselves out, their breakup creating streams of color and fire in the sky.
The Geminids are an early bird meteor shower at sunset in early December, and the constellation Gemini – from which it appears to originate – rises about an hour after nightfall, making meteors visible relatively early in the evening.
When is the Geminid meteor shower?
The Geminid meteor shower lit up the sky over Beijing’s Forbidden City in 2015. Spark News
The Geminids come every year, blessing us with their brilliance from mid-November to mid-December. This round, the rain will peak on Wednesday night, Dec 13, into the early morning hours of Dec 14.
Look for the most meteors per hour starting around 9pm with a crescendo at 2am and meteors falling at a rate of one to two per minute.
Mythology
A sign of duality and adaptability, Gemini is symbolized by the mythological twins Castor and Pollux. Getty Images
The Geminid rays, or points in the sky from which they appear to originate, are the constellations of Gemini named for them. This is not the source of the meteors but their visual indicator.
The constellation Gemini is related to the myth of the mythological twins Castor and Pollux.
Castor was the son of King Tyndareus and Pollux the immortal descendant of Zeus, an ancient example of heteropaternal superfecundation. (Google; I’ll wait.) Handsome and headstrong, the brothers are inseparable, fighting, sailing the seas and swearing allegiance to each other.
When Castor is mortally wounded in battle, Pollux, enraged with grief, pleads with his father Zeus to save him. Zeus, calm pater familiasdivides the difference in their fates and gives them both a deathless death – thus placing the twins in the night sky, where they shine brightly and on the other side.
Metaphorically, and especially under the dark energy and revitalizing of the new moon, the Geminids remind us of the importance of intimacy, sacrifice and the journey or die willing to give up forever for fellowship, while also conveying that we are made of stardust. and to stardust we shall surely return.
What is the difference between comets and asteroids?
Meteors (left) from the Geminids meteor shower enter Earth’s atmosphere past the stars Castor and Pollux (two bright stars, right) on Dec. 12, 2009, over Southold in Suffolk County, New York. AFP via Getty Images
Unlike most other meteor showers that originate from comets, the Geminids originate from the asteroid 3200 Phaethon, named after Phaethon, son of the sun god (name of a large group) Helios, who borrowed his father’s chariot to bring disaster.
The difference between a comet and an asteroid, you ask?
Comets are, according to Earth Sky, “dirty snowballs with a solid nucleus covered by a layer of ice that sublimates (changes from solid to gas) as the comet approaches the sun. Comets circle the sun in elongated orbits, approach the sun, then move away from the sun.”
Conversely, and perhaps less poetically, an asteroid is a rock whose orbit around the sun is circular.
Much like the demigod he names, Phaethon is difficult to define. According to NASA: “It is possible that Phaethon is a ‘dead comet’ or a new type of object that astronomers are discussing called a ‘rock comet.'”
Where to watch
Geminid meteor shower in California. Bill Gracey/Flickr
The Geminid meteor shower will be visible around the world with maximum visibility in the Northern Hemisphere.
The best practice for meteor watching is to find a spot as far as possible from man-made lights. Most of us in the Northern Hemisphere will be under the cold winter weather, bundle up, bring a hot drink or warming hooch holder, and settle in to watch.
For those who die and get cold easily, consider sleeping bags, weighted blankets, long underwear or cuddly puddles.
How to watch
The further away from light pollution (including your cell phone), the better. Alamy Stock Photo
Under clear skies and away from the annoying glare of light pollution, Geminids will be visible to the naked eye. While many people will reach for a telescope or binoculars, it’s actually better to take in the whole sky, rather than a small part.
Meteors can and will appear anywhere in the sky, but your best bet is to stare into the darkest part of the sky available at your location. For best results, lie on your back with your feet facing south. After about 30 minutes, your eyes will adjust to the dark.
Avoid looking at your phone during a meteor shower, as it will affect your night vision and disrupt your ancient connection up and down.
Look up, pray well and feel the gravity of being cosmic and being, so small and infinite.
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports on planetary configurations and their effects on each zodiac sign. His horoscope integrates history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. He is also an accomplished writer who has profiled various artists and entertainers, as well as recounting his experiences while traveling extensively. Among the many interesting topics she has discussed are cemetery etiquette, her love of dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, “girl guides” for stripping and the “weirdest” food available abroad.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
