The 2010 Geminids meteor shower will make in appearance in the night skies this week, and NASA has said that it will be the best meteor shower of the year.
"The 2010 Geminid meteor shower promises to be lively, with realistic viewing rates of 50-80 meteors per hour and potential peaks reaching 120 meteors per hour," NASA said on the NASA Chats page.
Stargazers can see the meteor anytime between Dec. 12-16, but NASA said the night of Dec. 13-14 should offer the best views.
The Geminid meteor is actually comprised of rocky debris from 3200 Phaethon, an extinct comet that was once thought to be an asteroid. Each year, the earth passes through this stream of Geminids, which causes meteors, or shooting stars to to spit from the Gemini constellation. This phenomenon first appeared quietly in the late 19th century and wasn't expected to be a major event.
To learn more about the meteor, NASA will host a live chat with meteor experts on Monday, Dec. 13 at 3 p.m. Eastern time. For those staying up through the night to watch the shower, NASA astronomer Bill Cooke will be online from 11 p.m. on Dec. 13 to 5 a.m. on Dec. 14 to answer questions and explain what's going on in the heavens.
Also, NASA will provide a live camera feed of the shower on the NASA chats page. So in case of inclement weather, anyone will be able to watch the event online.
Dec. 20 will offer another astronomical event. Beginning that night and ending the following morning will be the only fully lunar eclipse of 2010. People will be able to see this event in North America, South America, Central America, Greenland, and Iceland.
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