Michel Deconinck, the
assistant comet recorder for the Association of Lunar and Planetary
Observers, also loves watching meteor showers. This watercolor is his
impression of the 2023 Geminid meteor shower as seen from Artignosc,
Provence, France.
The Geminids in 2024 will be
largely spoiled by a bright moon which reaches its full phase on
December 15th. The time of maximum activity is predicted to occur
anywhere from 17 Universal Time on December 13th to 1 Universal Time on
the 14th. This timing favors Asia, but most of the world can see good
Geminid activity on December 13 and 14. Since most Geminid meteors are
faint, as well as most meteors in general, the intense moonlight will
obscure at least 75 percent of the activity normally seen in years
without interfering moonlight. This would mean at 2am on either morning
the Geminids would produce about 15 meteors per hour.
Observers can avoid
moonlight by viewing during the predawn hours after the waxing gibbous
moon has set during the week prior to the 13/14 maximum. Hourly rates
during this period would be 5-15 per hour, depending on the date. At
this time of night the Geminid radiant will lie in the western sky, but
Geminid activity can still be seen anywhere in the sky.
Geminid meteors can bee seen
all night long from all over the world. Only in Antarctica, where there
is 24 hours of daylight this time of year, is this display not visible.
The Geminid radiant passes overhead near 2am local standard time for
observers located near 30 degrees north latitude. The entire northern
hemisphere gets a good view of these meteors. Conditions become less
favorable in the southern hemisphere as the radiant is only visible
during the morning hours from South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and
the southern portions of South America. The radiant is also located much
lower in the northern sky as seen from these southern locations.
Seeing 15 meteors per hour
is stronger than most nights of the year, so if your sky is clear the
effort to see these meteors is worth it. Photographers may also wish to
take advantage of the illuminated landscape and try to capture bright
Geminid meteors near the horizon, where they are most numerous.
There are
only two more major meteors showers predicted for the "meteor season" in
the northern hemisphere. The normally weak Ursids peak on December 22nd
with a half-illuminated moon in the morning sky. expected hour rates
would only be near 5. The Quadrantids are predicted to peak on January
3rd between 15 and 17 Universal Time which favors Alaska and extreme
eastern Russia. Hawaii may be well positioned but the radiant will be
much lower in the sky, hence less activity. Since there is no
interfering moonlight for the Quadrantids, maximum rates could be quite
strong, surpassing 60 per hour for the favored locations. The peak only
lasts around 6 hours so most of the world will witness a much weaker
display.