Kingdom to witness Geminid meteor shower this weekend

AMMAN — Astronomer Imad Mujahid, a member of the Royal Astronomical Society and the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences (AUASS), has announced that the Kingdom’s skies, along with those of the Arab world, will light up with a "spectacular" Geminid meteor shower this weekend. 

The peak activity is expected in the early hours of Saturday and Sunday, with more than 120 meteors per hour visible, creating a breathtaking celestial display.

Speaking to the Jordan News Agency, Petra, Mujahid noted that the Geminid meteor shower, one of the most prominent annual astronomical events, does not require specialised equipment to observe. 

“All you need to do is look up at the sky,” he said. 

Also, online tracking using meteor radio detection technology offers an alternative for enthusiasts unable to view the event in person.

The meteors will be most visible just before dawn, appearing in the central part of the sky. 

Mujahid elaborated on the radio detection method, which works by reflecting radio waves off the ionised trails created when meteors burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.

Travelling at speeds of up to 80 kilometres per second, these meteors generate intense heat, ionising the surrounding air and enabling radio signals from ground-based stations to reflect back, even from distances over 2,000 kilometres.

This method, Mujahid noted, has the added benefit of allowing meteor observation even in poor weather conditions or daylight, noting that the best times for radio-based observation are from dawn until about two hours after sunrise.