Geminid Meteors over Xinglong Observatory
Image Credit & Copyright: Steed Yu and NightChina.netExplanation: Where do Geminid meteors come from? In terms of location on the sky, as the
featured image composite beautifully demonstrates, the sand-sized bits of rock that create the streaks of the
Geminid Meteor Showerappear to
flow out from the
constellation of Gemini. In terms of parent body,
Solar System trajectories point to the asteroid
3200 Phaethon — but this results in a
bit of a mystery since that unusual object appears
mostly dormant. Perhaps,
3200 Phaethon undergoes greater
dust-liberating events than we know, but even if so, exactly what happens and why
remains a riddle. Peaking last week, over 50 meteors including a
bright fireball were captured streaking above
Xinglong Observatory in
China. Since the
Geminids of
December are one of the most predictable and
active meteor showers, investigations into details of its origin are likely to continue.
Source: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
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