Tonight Could Bring Some of 2024's Final Fireballs

The Geminids—among the few major meteor showers to come from asteroids—peak on Friday, one of the year's last chances to see fireballs in the sky. The shower often produces meteors with a distinctly more yellow glow, likely due to the unusual origin material, said Sally Brummel, planetarium manager at the University of Minnesota's Bell Museum. Under ideal viewing conditions, the Geminids typically put on one of the best and brightest shows of the year, due to the high volume of meteors visible each hour. However, although this year could see up to 15 meteors per hour at peak time, there will be an almost full moon this year as well, according to the American Meteor Society. The moonlight "will wash out a lot of them," Brummel said. Viewing lasts until Dec. 21, per the AP. More:

• What is a meteor shower? Multiple meteor showers occur annually, and you don't need special equipment to see them. Most meteor showers originate from the debris of comets, but a few—including the Geminids—result from the debris of asteroids. The Geminids come from the sun-orbiting asteroid 3200 Phaethon.

• The science behind it: When rocks from space enter Earth's atmosphere, the resistance from the air makes them very hot. This causes the air to glow around them and briefly leaves a fiery tail—the end of a "shooting star." The glowing pockets of air around fast-moving space rocks, ranging from the size of a dust particle to a boulder, may be visible in the night sky. The rocky nature of asteroid debris makes the Geminids especially likely to produce fireballs, said NASA's William Cooke. "Those are pretty tough rocks that can penetrate deep into the atmosphere," he said.
• Viewing advice: Meteor showers are usually most visible between midnight and predawn hours. It's easier to see shooting stars under dark skies, away from city lights. Meteor showers also appear brightest on cloudless nights when the moon wanes smallest. Pro tip: Your eyes will better adapt to seeing meteors if you aren't checking your phone.
• When's the next meteor shower? The upcoming Ursids will peak on Dec. 22.

(More Geminid meteor shower stories.)