Geminid meteor shower

astronomy

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June 17, 2026

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The Geminid meteor shower is an annual event that occurs in December, with its peak around December 14th. It is known for its strong visual display and is associated with the object (3200) Phaethon.12

Meteor showers happen when Earth passes through streams of debris left behind by comets or other celestial bodies. The Geminids are unique because their parent body, Phaethon, is believed to be a burned-out comet, though it has the appearance of an asteroid. When Earth intersects this debris stream, the particles burn up in our atmosphere, creating the visible meteors. The Geminids are named after the constellation Gemini, as their radiant—the point from which they appear to originate—is located there.213

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asteroid
Asteroids in unusual orbits
…the parent body of the Geminid meteor stream, the concentration of meteoroids responsible for the annual Geminid meteor shower seen on Earth each December. Because the parent bodies of all other meteor streams identified to date are comets, Phaethon is considered by some to be a defunct comet—one that has…
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…the parent body of the Geminid meteor stream, the concentration of meteoroids responsible for the annual Geminid meteor shower seen on Earth each December. Because the parent bodies of all other meteor streams identified to date are comets, Phaethon is considered by some to be a defunct comet—one that has…
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meteor and meteoroid
Meteor showers
The parent object of the Geminid shower has all the appearances of a small Earth-crossing asteroid. Discovered in 1983, it does not exhibit the usual cometary features of a nebulous head and long tail and so was placed among the asteroids and named Phaethon. Most researchers believe Phaethon is the…
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The parent object of the Geminid shower has all the appearances of a small Earth-crossing asteroid. Discovered in 1983, it does not exhibit the usual cometary features of a nebulous head and long tail and so was placed among the asteroids and named Phaethon. Most researchers believe Phaethon is the…
Read More