A meteor shower featuring up to 20 times more shooting stars than normal will tear through the skies over Ireland from early evening on Friday and overnight into Saturday morning.
The shower of space debris, or geminids, visible since earlier in the month and into next week, reaches its most spectacular peak of activity over the 12 hours from approximately 5pm, with the optimal time at 2am.
Geminids, known for producing the brightest of all fireballs, are relatively small pieces of dust that fell off an asteroid named Phaethon.
Sky watchers will also benefit from fair weather with light cloud cover forecast, though the near full moon will make the fainter fireballs less visible.
“With the full moon in the sky the fainter meteors will be drowned out but this, the best meteor shower of the year, is known for producing many bright fireballs,” David Moore, editor of Astronomy Ireland Magazine, told RTÉ.
“In past decades the Perseid meteor shower in August was the best but this has declined somewhat in recent years to leave the geminids reigning supreme.
“This is also good news for the public because that August shower cannot be well seen until 11pm but the geminids begins as soon as it gets dark, around 5pm and runs until dawn.”
Residents in rural areas unsurprisingly have a better chance of catching the full astronomical power of the shower, but given its expected intensity those in the city will still have a good view.
Particles will enter the atmosphere at speeds of 150,000mph, vaporise and create the shooting stars. Geminids can appear multi-coloured.
Astronomy Ireland is advising watchers to fill their entire field of vision with the night sky, with ta deck chair, lounger or a blanket on the ground perfect for the best view.
