© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Skywatchers rejoice: The Geminids meteor shower peaks tonight

This photo taken late Dec. 14, 2018, with a long time exposure shows a meteor streaking through the night sky over Myanmar during the Geminids meteor shower seen from Wundwin township near Mandalay city.
Ye Aung Thu
/
AFP via Getty Images
This photo taken late Dec. 14, 2018, with a long time exposure shows a meteor streaking through the night sky over Myanmar during the Geminids meteor shower seen from Wundwin township near Mandalay city.

Turn your attention skyward Saturday evening and you should be able to catch the peak of the annual Geminids meteor shower.

The yellow dancing streaks light up the night sky every December with meteors zipping through the heavens at a rate of 120 an hour, according to NASA.

Stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere will have the best view, but the meteor shower will be visible in the Southern Hemisphere as well.

Most meteor showers are the debris left behind from comets — large, tailed blobs of ice and dust. But the Geminids shower originates from Asteroid 3200 Phaethon — a relatively small (3.17 miles across) — celestial oddity that scientists are still trying to understand.

Asteroids differ from comets in that asteroids are rocky metallic masses typically found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, while comets are typically mostly ice.

According to NASA, Phaethon, the source of the Geminids, however, is potentially a "dead comet" or even a new discovery they call a "rock comet."

Regardless of how science would define its source, if you're skywatching on Saturday, lie flat on your back outside with your feet facing south. After about 30 minutes in the dark, you should be able to see the dazzles of the Geminids, lasting until dawn.

Copyright 2025 NPR

Alana Wise
Alana Wise is a politics reporter on the Washington desk at NPR.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

Related Content