1 00:00:20,353 --> 00:00:24,791 DEAN: WELCOME TO STAR GAZERS. 2 00:00:24,891 --> 00:00:27,694 I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FROM THE CINCINNATI OBSERVATORY. 3 00:00:27,794 --> 00:00:31,698 JAMES: AND I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE 4 00:00:31,798 --> 00:00:33,166 FLORIDA. 5 00:00:33,266 --> 00:00:36,302 THIS WEEK, WERE GOING TO ANSWER A QUESTION FROM ONE OF OUR VIEWERS. 6 00:00:36,403 --> 00:00:38,038 JOHN ZIMMERMAN OF NEW JERSEY. 7 00:00:38,138 --> 00:00:39,939 WRITES: DEAR STAR GAZERS. 8 00:00:40,040 --> 00:00:44,344 IVE SEEN A LOT OF METEOR SHOWERS AND I ALWAYS WONDERED, WHY ARE SOME METEOR SHOWERS BETTER 9 00:00:44,444 --> 00:00:45,345 THAN OTHERS? 10 00:00:45,445 --> 00:00:47,213 DEAN: EXCELLENT QUESTION, JOHN! 11 00:00:47,313 --> 00:00:52,719 THIS WEEK OUR PLANET EARTH WILL INTERSECT WITH THE PATH OF AN ASTEROID NAMED 3200 PHAETHON 12 00:00:52,819 --> 00:00:56,656 AND WE'RE USUALLY TREATED TO WHAT CAN BE A VERY GOOD METEOR SHOWER. 13 00:00:56,756 --> 00:01:01,795 JAMES: HOWEVER, THIS YEAR, OUR NEAREST NEIGHBOR IN SPACE IS GOING TO RUIN SOME OF THE FUN. 14 00:01:01,895 --> 00:01:02,962 WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? 15 00:01:03,063 --> 00:01:04,831 LET'S SHOW YOU! 16 00:01:04,931 --> 00:01:09,836 JAMES: TO ANSWER JOHNS QUESTION, A METEOR SHOWER OCCURS WHENEVER OUR EARTH RIDES DIRECTLY 17 00:01:09,936 --> 00:01:14,340 INTO A STREAM OF SPACE DEBRIS AND THE LITTLE PIECES OF DEBRIS SLAM INTO OUR EARTH'S UPPER 18 00:01:14,441 --> 00:01:17,377 ATMOSPHERE AND PRODUCE VISIBLE STREAKS OF LIGHT. 19 00:01:17,477 --> 00:01:20,914 WE CALL THESE STREAKS OF LIGHT, METEORS (OR SHOOTING STARS). 20 00:01:21,014 --> 00:01:26,052 DEAN: YOU SEE, EVERY TIME A COMET PAYS A VISIT TO THE SUN, IT SHEDS PART OF ITSELF. 21 00:01:26,152 --> 00:01:30,623 AND EVENTUALLY, AS THE COMET MAKES A LOT OF TRIPS TO THE SUN, THE ENTIRE ORBIT OF THE 22 00:01:30,723 --> 00:01:33,226 COMET GETS LITTERED WITH COMET DEBRIS. 23 00:01:33,326 --> 00:01:39,732 AND WHENEVER OUR EARTH CROSSES A WELL-LITTERED COMETARY ORBIT, WE GET HIT WITH THIS STUFF, 24 00:01:39,833 --> 00:01:42,535 AND EXPERIENCE WHAT WE CALL A METEOR SHOWER. 25 00:01:42,635 --> 00:01:46,940 JAMES: THE METEOR SHOWER WERE EXPERIENCING NEXT WEEK IS THE GEMINID METEOR SHOWER AND 26 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:52,145 BACK IN 1983 IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THE OBJECT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE GEMINID METEOR SHOWER 27 00:01:52,245 --> 00:01:57,450 IS NOT AN ORDINARY COMET BUT AN ASTEROID OR PERHAPS BETTER NAMED A ROCK COMET. 28 00:01:57,550 --> 00:02:02,388 DEAN: AFTER A COMET HAS MADE A LOT OF TRIPS TO THE SUN, ALL ITS SNOW AND ICE EVENTUALLY 29 00:02:02,489 --> 00:02:05,892 MELT AWAY, AND ONLY A SOLID CORE IS LEFT. 30 00:02:05,992 --> 00:02:11,698 WE THEN CALL THAT SOLID COMET CORE AN ASTEROID, SINCE IT'S NO LONGER CAPABLE OF PRODUCING 31 00:02:11,798 --> 00:02:13,533 A COMETARY DISPLAY. 32 00:02:13,633 --> 00:02:18,872 JAMES: THEREFORE, WHAT WE'RE EXPERIENCING HERE IS DEBRIS FROM A COMET SO OLD AND WORN 33 00:02:18,972 --> 00:02:23,409 OUT THAT IT NO LONGER HAS THE STUFF TO PUT ON ALL THE SHOW AND WONDER OF A BRILLIANT 34 00:02:23,510 --> 00:02:27,580 COMET HEAD WITH A LONG TAIL OF GAS AND DUST, SUCH AS COMET HALE-BOPP. 35 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:32,485 SO, WHILE WE WILL NEVER, EVER AGAIN SEE A BRILLIANT COMET ASSOCIATED WITH THE GEMINID 36 00:02:32,585 --> 00:02:37,390 METEOR SHOWER, WE WILL CONTINUE TO EXPERIENCE THE GEMINID METEOR SHOWER ITSELF; WHICH IS 37 00:02:37,490 --> 00:02:42,462 ONE OF THE TWO BEST METEOR SHOWERS OF THE YEAR, THE AUGUST PERSEIDS USUALLY COMING IN 38 00:02:42,562 --> 00:02:44,297 AS NUMBER ONE. 39 00:02:44,397 --> 00:02:49,135 JAMES: THIS YEAR THE PEAK OF THE SHOWER WILL OCCUR ON TUESDAY DECEMBER 13TH, AFTER DARK 40 00:02:49,235 --> 00:02:52,772 RIGHT THROUGH TO SUNRISE, WEDNESDAY MORNING DECEMBER 14TH. 41 00:02:52,872 --> 00:02:57,644 HOWEVER, UNLIKE PREVIOUS YEARS, THIS YEAR MIGHT BE A WASH OUT ON THE NIGHT OF THE PEAK 42 00:02:57,744 --> 00:02:59,946 BECAUSE OF OUR NEAREST NEIGHBOR IN SPACE. 43 00:03:00,046 --> 00:03:01,814 DEAN: THATS RIGHT JAMES. 44 00:03:01,915 --> 00:03:06,819 OUR EVER-POPULAR AND LOVELY NATURAL SATELLITE, THE MOON, WILL BE IN A BOTHERSOME LOCATION 45 00:03:06,920 --> 00:03:08,855 IN ITS ORBIT THIS TIME AROUND. 46 00:03:08,955 --> 00:03:13,826 IT WILL BE IN THE WANING GIBBOUS PHASE, WHICH WILL PUT IT ABOVE THE HORIZON DURING THE BEST 47 00:03:13,927 --> 00:03:15,662 PART OF THE SHOWER. 48 00:03:15,762 --> 00:03:19,532 JAMES: FORTUNATELY, THE GEMINIDS IS SUCH A DENSE METEOR SHOWER THAT IT USUALLY PUTS ON 49 00:03:19,632 --> 00:03:23,236 A GOOD SHOW FOR SEVERAL NIGHTS BEFORE AND AFTER THE PEAK. 50 00:03:23,336 --> 00:03:28,441 SO BEGINNING AS EARLY AS DECEMBER 7TH TO AS LATE AS DECEMBER 21ST, YOU CAN SEE QUITE A 51 00:03:28,541 --> 00:03:32,111 FEW METEORS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SHOWER, WITHOUT INTERFERENCE BY THE MOON. 52 00:03:32,212 --> 00:03:37,951 DEAN: SO, TO FINISH ANSWERING JOHNS QUESTION, THIS IS A MAJOR REASON WHY SOME METEOR SHOWERS 53 00:03:38,051 --> 00:03:39,886 ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS. 54 00:03:39,986 --> 00:03:44,190 ALTHOUGH THE TIMING OF THE PEAK OF THE METEOR SHOWER STAYS PRETTY MUCH THE SAME EVERY YEAR, 55 00:03:44,290 --> 00:03:48,194 THE PHASE OF THE MOON IS ALWAYS DIFFERENT ON THE SAME DATE EACH YEAR. 56 00:03:48,294 --> 00:03:52,832 JAMES: THEREFORE, IF YOUR METEOR SHOWER IS RUINED BY A FULL MOON ON DECEMBER 13TH ONE 57 00:03:52,932 --> 00:03:57,470 YEAR, A YEAR OR SO LATER, THE MOON WILL BE IN A WAXING PHASE ON THAT SAME DATE, PUTTING 58 00:03:57,570 --> 00:04:02,075 IT BELOW THE HORIZON DURING THE METEOR SHOWERS PEAK AND THUS MAKING THE FAINTER METEORS EASIER 59 00:04:02,175 --> 00:04:03,910 TO SEE. 60 00:04:04,010 --> 00:04:07,280 DEAN: TO WATCH THE GEMINID METEOR SHOWER, GET COMFORTABLE IN A LAWN CHAIR OR SLEEPING 61 00:04:07,380 --> 00:04:11,117 BAG AND CONSTANTLY SCAN THE SKY BACK AND FORTH. 62 00:04:11,217 --> 00:04:15,521 ITS GOOD TO BE FAR AWAY FROM CITY LIGHTS AND HAVE A CLEAR DARK SKY TO CATCH THE FAINTEST 63 00:04:15,622 --> 00:04:17,190 OF METEORS. 64 00:04:17,290 --> 00:04:20,260 JAMES: AND AGAIN, IT HELPS IF YOU CAN GET OUTSIDE BEFORE THE MOON COMES UP. 65 00:04:20,360 --> 00:04:25,131 DEAN: SO WATCH OUR EARTH IMPACT THE REMAINS OF AN ASTEROID OVER THE NEXT TWO WEEKS. 66 00:04:25,231 --> 00:04:28,968 JAMES: AND IT WILL BE SUCH A LOVELY IMPACT, PARTICULARLY IF YOU REMEMBER TO. 67 00:04:29,068 --> 00:04:33,068 BOTH: KEEP LOOKING UP!