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2024 was an amazing year for sky watchers, including solar eclipses, parade of planets and some of the most intense sightings of the aurora borealis seen for years. Tucked away are a number of meteor showers, including as big as the Perseids and the triple meteor shower seen back in July. There’s still a chance to catch the Geminids, one of the biggest meteor showers of the year, along with several others.
Three more meteor showers will begin or peak during December. The biggest are the Geminids, which started in November and reach their peak from December 13 to 14. Ursidi will start on December 13th and last until Christmas Eve, December 24th. Finally, the Quadrantids will begin after Christmas and peak just after the New Year.
With all three meteor showers moving back into each other, sky watchers have a chance to see meteors any night for the rest of the year and into 2025. It also helps that the Geminids and Quadrantids are the two biggest meteor showers of the year, so increasing your chances of seeing the star parachute.
Read more: A NASA astronaut captured the “crazy” view of the Aurora from space
How to see a meteor shower
Meteor viewing requires a bit of work. Generally, when astronomers calculate the number of meteors you see per hour, they assume that you are far from a major city, with no visible moon. Since the Moon is almost always at least partially full, this means you probably won’t see the maximum number of meteors per hour.
Read more: Stranded NASA astronauts on ISS see ‘twilight zone’
Go outside where the sky is as dark as possible. People living in a big city may see a pair during larger showers like the Geminids and Quadrantids, but for smaller showers, even people living in the suburbs may not see any. When you’re away from light pollution, all you have to do is look shining — the point from which meteor showers originate — and wait for the meteors to appear.
Geminids
A view of the Geminid meteor shower in Sichuan Province, China, in December 2020.
when it happens: From November 19 to December 24
Peak Date: December 13 to 14
Maximum meteor speed: 150 meteors per hour
The Geminids are one of the biggest meteor showers of the year, starting before Thanksgiving. It was generated by the asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which is unique in that its orbit brings it closer to the sun than any other named asteroid. The Geminids are, on average, even more intense than the popular Perseid meteor shower, which spawns two to three times as many meteors.
The radiant for the Geminids is Gemini, which is below the horizon in the Northern Hemisphere for most of the night. The good news is that the meteor shower will be visible all over the night sky during its peak, so you don’t really need to find a radiant for this one.
A meteor burns in the sky over the al-Abrak desert north of Kuwait City during the annual Geminid meteor shower early on December 15, 2023.
Ursidi
when it happens: From December 13 to 24
Peak Date: December 21 to 22
Maximum meteor speed: 10 meteors per hour
The Ursidis meteor shower appears during the peak for the Geminids and ends on the same day, making it difficult to determine whether the meteor came from the Geminids or the Ursids. The only reason there is a differentiation is because the radiant is different and the Ursids are fed by the 8P/Tuttle comet. Overall, it’s a smaller meteor shower that will mostly be overshadowed by the Geminids, but if you see a meteor in mid-December, it may be from the Ursids.
The Ursids radiate from Ursa Minor, one of the most famous constellations in the night sky and part of the constellation Ursa Major. It will be high in the northern sky when the Ursids are at their peak, making it one of the easiest radiants to find in the night sky.
Quadrantids
The Quadrantid meteor shower is seen over the Pigeon Point Light Station in Pescadero, California on January 4, 2024.
when it happens: From December 26 to January 16
Peak Date: January 2 to 3
Maximum meteor speed: 120 meteors per hour
This meteor shower peaks after the new year, but will start right after Christmas. It is one of the most active meteor showers during its peak, but its peak is measured in hours instead of days. It is supplied by the 2003 EH asteroid, which NASA has classified as a near-Earth object because its orbit passes quite close to Earth. The Quadrantids are named after the constellation Quadrans Muralis, which actually ceased to exist officially recognized as a constellation since 1922 due to the overcrowding of star charts.
The best time to see the Quadrantids will be the evening of January 2nd and the morning of January 3rd. It can throw more than 100 meteors per hour, but it won’t do it for long. You’ll want to look for this near the Big Dipper, so close to the same place as the Ursidis.
