The Geminid meteor shower is an annual end-of-year celestial event that boasts up to 140 meteors per hour. The shower hit its peak early this morning, but there’s still one last chance to catch this amazing sky show in Australia. Here are the dates and times you need to know about.
Geminid Meteor Shower times
The Geminid Meteor Shower occurs between December 13–16 each year. It is set to peak in Australia early Thursday morning (December 14).
However, you can still get a pretty decent show on December 15 between 3:30am and 4:00am (AEDT). According to the science boffins who study this stuff, you can expect to see up to 27 meteors per hour during this time period.
The exact number of meteors you’ll see depends on your location. The further north you are in Australia, the more you’ll see. Areas on the same latitude as Darwin offer the best vantage points but you will still be able to see a fair few meteors in other states and territories.
Here are the optimum viewing times for each state and territory:
Geminid Meteor Shower peak | |
---|---|
NSW | 3:30am-4:00am |
Victoria | 3:30am-4:00am |
Queensland | 2:30am-3:00am |
ACT | 3:30am-4:00am |
South Australia | 3:00am-3:30am |
Western Australia | 12:30am-1:00am |
Tasmania | 3:30am-4:00am |
Northern Territory | 1:30am-2:00am |
For best results, bring a blanket to lie on, leave your phones and other night-vision hampering gadgets at home and look towards the north sky. Instead of fixating on a single portion of the night’s sky, seasoned stargazers recommend flicking your eyes from side to side – and be patient!
For more viewing tips, hit up our in-depth Geminid Meteor Shower guide.
[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/12/how-to-watch-tonights-geminid-meteor-shower-in-australia-2/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2017/12/Gemini-410×231.jpg” title=”Geminid Meteor Shower: How To Watch In Australia” excerpt=”Tonight’s Geminid meteor shower will be visible from every country on earth. However, the impressiveness of the celestial display depends on a range of factors, including time, viewing strategies and location. Here are some tips for watching the Geminid Meteor Shower in Australia.”]
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