Skywatchers in the UAE can get set to witness the last meteor shower of the year, the Geminids Meteor Shower, on December 13. The Dubai Astronomy Group (DAG), which is organising a special viewing event at the Al Qudra Desert, said under ideal conditions, the colourful Geminids can deliver up to 120 meteors per hour. The Geminids Meteor Shower is an annual celestial event that occurs when the Earth passes through the debris trail of the asteroid, 3200 Phaethon. As these fragments enter the Earth’s atmosphere, they burn up, creating bright streaks of light across the night sky. According to DAG, the Geminids Meteor Shower gets its name because the meteors appear to originate from a point in the sky within the constellation Gemini (Latin for “Twins”). This point or the radiant is believed to be the source of the meteors when viewed from the Earth. The name “Geminids” directly refers to the constellation Gemini, which is associated with the mythological twins Castor and Pollux in Greek and Roman mythology. However, the actual source of the meteors is not the constellation itself, but the debris left behind by 3200 Phaethon. The name simply reflects the meteors’ radiant point in the […]