The Best Time To Witness Hundreds Of Meteors In Utah

When you go to see the lights this year, don’t forget to look up. One of the biggest meteor showers that fills the night sky is taking place this December and it peaks on Wednesday and Thursday December 13th and 14th. 

It is called the Geminid meteor shower and was named because it looks like it occurs near that constellation. It is the result of an asteroid that has broken apart rather than a comet. During these two days you could witness as many as 120 meteors per hour.

 Maybe this is the year you experience a meteor light display for Christmas. It will be a good time to see the meteors as the moon will be a sliver and shouldn’t obscure too much with its light. Other tricks to enjoy a meteor shower include: 

Get away from city lights 

Anything reflecting light into the sky will make it harder to see. This may be the night you rent a yurt in Zion and stick your head out of the flaps. 

Don’t focus on one spot

Let your eyes scan the entire sky rather than focusing on one patch. In this way you will see the streaks in the sky from wherever they occur. 

Early morning hours

The best time to watch a meteor shower is after midnight. This has to do with when the earth is moving into the stream of dust and rock that then enter the atmosphere. 

If you do get some great photos of the meteor shower I would love to see them and share them with others. On the app there is a place you can submit photo/video.

With all the Holiday cheer and people stringing their eves with lights, it is good to see the universe getting in the spirit. The meteor shower goes on every night through December 19th. Merry Christmas.