Dec 13/14 Meteors and the Geminids at Their Peak

The Geminids are currently at their peak level of activity. Visual meteor observers in Europe reported Zenithal Hourly Rates (ZHR) as high as 100-180 meteors per hour. The ZHR numbers are a measure of how many meteors would be seen if the radiant was located overhead and the sky is dark with no light pollution from the Moon or city lights. Because of the brightness of the nearly Full Moon, the actual rates being observed are closer to 20-40 meteors per hour. A near real-time plot of the Geminids can be found at the website of the International Meteor Organization.

Here in Tucson, the story wasn’t the Geminids but the clouds and rain. My camera was only able to detect 5 meteors (3 were Geminids) between the clouds.