If you don’t already have plans for Wednesday night, grab a coat and a chair and catch the best and brightest show the sky will put on this year.
The Geminid meteor shower will peak late Wednesday night into early Thursday morning. With no precipitation in the forecast and only 26% cloud cover expected — and a waxing crescent moon — the stage is set to see quite a few fireballs.
According to space.com: “Geminids typically encounter Earth at 22 miles (35 km) per second; roughly half the speed of a Leonid meteor. Many appear yellowish in hue. Some have even been seen to form jagged or divided paths.”
The clear skies and small moon mean viewers should see at least 60 or more meteors an hour, the website said.
The best way to see them, of course, is from a location with little light pollution. In Georgia, the best places are:
17515 Highway 177, Fargo, GA 31631
Drive time from metro Atlanta: 4½ hours
This Okefenokee Swamp park was voted one of the best spots in the world for star gazing last year by the International Dark Sky Association for its vast skies and minimal light pollution.
North Georgia mountains
The beautiful mountains in northeast Georgia make for ideal campgrounds during a meteor shower.
Some popular campgrounds near the mountains can be found at Moccasin Creek State Park and Cooper’s Creek Recreational Area.
3655 Georgia Highway197, Clarkesville, GA 30523
Drive time from metro Atlanta: Less than two hours
Cooper’s Creek Recreational Area
6050 Appalachian Hwy Suches, GA 30572
Drive time from metro Atlanta: Approximately two hours
Campgrounds are first-come, first-served.
The meteors will emanate from a point in the sky near the star Castor, in the constellation Gemini, for which the shower is named.
Be sure to catch them this week, because space.com says they’ll be gone by the weekend, at least until next year.
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