Starwatch: here come the Geminids, an unusual sort of meteor shower

They are thought to be debris from an asteroid rather than a comet, and are also relatively slow-moving

It is time for one of the most reliable meteor showers of the year. The Geminids are active between 4 and 17 December, with the peak of activity usually coming on the night of 13-14 December.

This year, the peak is expected to bring about 120 meteors an hour, although a nearby waning gibbous Moon with around 73% of its surface illuminated will make if difficult to see the fainter meteors. As the name suggests, the Geminids radiate from a point within Gemini, the twins, just above the constellation's two brightest stars Castor and Pollux. The meteors will appear to streak across the sky in all directions from this point, known as the radiant.

This article was amended on 13 December 2022. An earlier version said that the moon would be waxing. In fact it would be waning.