This weekend could see “perfect” conditions for a dazzling meteor shower in the skies above the UK.
The Geminids could produce up to 100 shooting stars a minute at their peak on Saturday night.
The spectacular display could see meteors glowing in different colours with occasional bursts of two or three together.
The Geminid meteor shower display above St Mary’s Lighthouse, Whitley Bay in 2013. (Rex Features)
The meteors should be visible in the UK from around 10pm on Saturday.
They’re expected to look their best at around 2am on Sunday, when the “radiant” point in the sky – from which they seem to appear – is almost overhead.
The official Geminid ”maximum” will be at 11am on Sunday, but daylight will make them hard to see.
Robin Scagell, from the Society for Popular Astronomy , said: “It should be a good display, weather permitting – we might not be far off perfect conditions in the UK.
“The constellation is very high in the sky and most of the Moon will have gone away.
“An average of one comet a minute would be a good rate, and that’s possible. You might also get little bursts of activity with two or three together.”
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NASA says the best place to watch the display will be “dark sky locations, away from city lights”.
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Meteor showers happen when the Earth moves through clouds of cometary dust.
Tiny particles burn up as they enter the atmosphere, creating the bright displays.
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The Geminids originate from the extinct comet, 3200 Phaethon.
They were first recorded in the 1860s.
Dazzling Geminid Meteor Shower Expected In UK
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