Bengaluru to miss spectacular view of Geminid meteor shower tonight

Sky watchers can witness a meteor shower peaking between Tuesday night and well into the early hours of Wednesday, Dec 12-13 night as the Geminid meteor shower comes around this time of the year when several meteoroids, left behind by ‘rock comet’ 3200 Phaethon, enter the earth’s atmosphere.

While Bengaluru-based Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium is organising an event to watch the night sky with naked eye between 10pm tonight till 4:30am Wednesday under expert advice and supervision after paying Rs. 500 per head, the winter night has become suddenly cloudy by evening that many may be left disappointed.

Following the Cyclone Mandous in Chennai and Andhra Pradesh coast, Bengaluru is under constant spell of rain in the last four days and the morning Sun soon disappeared on Wednesday.

However, people in other ares with clear sky can see meteors unless hindered by pollution and a cloudy sky, with a bright moon to add to that. However, if you are in luck, you will be able to observe around 30 to 40 meteors lighting up the night sky each hour, especially between 2am and 3am. Telescopes are not necessary for this event as they limit the view of the sky.