Space.com By Elizabeth Howell 12/14/2018
Editor's Note: The Geminid meteor shower has already peaked, but the Geminids will still be active for the next few days!
The famous winter meteor shower will sling bright shooting stars this week, marking the brightest shower of the year. The shower peaked Dec. 13-14, according to NASA meteor expert Bill Cooke. Even after the peak, bright meteors should be visible for the next few days.
The Geminids are considered one of the best meteor showers every year because the individual meteors are bright, and they come fast and furious: This year, there will be more than 1 per minute, reaching 100 meteors per hour. Under light-polluted skies, fewer meteors will be visible. Tonight (Dec. 13), you can see a Geminid meteor shower webcast from Slooh.com, beginning at 6 p.m. EST (2100 GMT). It will run through 10 p.m. EST (0300 Dec. 14 GMT). Here's what to expect tonight from Space.com's Sarah Lewin.
"The best time to view the Geminids is around 2 a.m. local time," Cooke said. "The moon will be first quarter, so it will set around midnight; there will be no moonlight to interfere with the Geminids this year." [The Geminid Meteor Shower: 6 Surprising Facts You Should Know]
The 2018 Geminid meteor shower comes with a bonus: a brilliant comet. The bright comet 46P/Wirtanen is also visible in the night sky with binoculars or a telescope, and can be found in the constellation Orion. If your skies are clear and dark enough (no light pollution), you may even be able to see the comet with the unaided eye. Here are some awesome photos of comet 46P/Wirtanen so far.
More:
https://www.space.com/34921-geminid-meteor-shower-guide.html
