Meteor Shower to Occur Starting the Night of the 13th

From the Night of the 13th, the Gemini Meteor Shower Will Fall
Peak Time in Korea at 9:50 AM on the 14th

[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] From the night of the 13th, the Geminids meteor shower will decorate the night sky. If you lay out a mat in a place where you can escape the city lights and gaze at the clear night sky, and carefully observe the center of the sky, it is expected that you will be able to enjoy the cosmic show presented by the meteor shower.

The Meteor Shower Will Fall on the 13th-14th

According to the International Meteor Organization (IMO) on the 10th, this year's Geminids meteor shower will appear in the night sky on the 13th-14th of this month. At the peak time on the 14th, about 150 meteors per hour (ZHR=150) are expected to be observed. ZHR refers to the number of meteors observable per hour under ideal observing conditions where stars of magnitude 6.5 are visible. Generally, the actual number of meteors seen is much lower than this.

In Korea, the most meteors can be seen from the night of the 13th until the early morning of the 14th. The peak observation time is 9:50 AM on the 14th. The observation site should be a place where you can see a dark and clear night sky away from city lights. A location without tall buildings or mountains nearby, with an open view in all directions, is also suitable.

When observing, it is recommended to look broadly at the center of the sky, the zenith. Although the meteor shower has a radiant point, looking only at the radiant point makes it difficult to see many meteors. The radiant point is the starting point from which meteors appear to spread out in all directions in the sky. If it is difficult to keep your head up for a long time, using a mat or a chair that reclines backward a lot is helpful.

Geminids Meteor Shower

The Geminids meteor shower is named because it appears to radiate from the direction of the constellation Gemini. This meteor shower can be seen every December.

This meteor shower occurs as the Earth passes through the debris left by asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which was broken up by the Sun's gravity. Phaethon is an asteroid first discovered by a satellite in 1983. Its orbit is similar to that of a comet, which caused confusion, but it is classified as an asteroid because it does not produce jets that create a coma or tail like a comet. 3200 Phaethon passes close to Earth (about 2.91 million km) and is classified as a potentially hazardous asteroid. When closest to the Sun, the distance between the Sun and Phaethon is about 0.14 AU, which is shorter than the distance between the Sun and Mercury.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.