Overview
- Peak activity arrives overnight Dec. 13–14, with strong rates from around 10 p.m. local time into the pre-dawn hours, often maximizing after midnight.
- Under ideal dark skies, NASA and the American Meteor Society expect about 120 meteors per hour, with some forecasts citing up to 150 at the top end.
- The display originates from debris shed by asteroid 3200 Phaethon, producing bright, often yellow meteors rather than the cometary dust typical of most showers.
- Observers can look for colorful fireballs and early-evening Earth-grazers as Gemini rises in the east, with the radiant climbing higher toward 2 a.m.
- No telescope is needed; choose a dark site, allow 20–30 minutes for night vision, check local cloud forecasts, or watch online via the Virtual Telescope Project or LiveMeteors.com.