Weather

December will dazzle with meteor shower, plus two planets will appear to touch!

The last month of 2020 brings some great news for stargazers! That’s right, December is sure to delight with two fun events in the night sky to enjoy with your family!

The Geminids

First off, the Geminids meteor shower will peak December 13 into the morning of December 14. This is an active meteor shower that radiates from the constellation Gemini. This year is even better because the moon won’t brighten the night sky at all! If you are away from city lights you can see about 50 meteors per hour around 2AM on December 14.

The Great Conjunction

Next, is a very special meeting of two planets known as a “great conjunction!” The two biggest planets, Saturn and Jupiter, will come together in the night sky! They will appear to touch! Because of their orbits, the two meet up every 20 years this century but this year, is very special. Saturn and Jupiter are expected to be about one tenth of a degree away from each other on the night of December 21 (aka the Winter Solstice). This is the closest they have been in several hundred years! A conjunction this close won’t happen again until 2080, according to NASA.

All month you may have noticed the two getting closer in the southwest sky but the week of December 20, they will appear to be on top of each other! If they skies are too cloudy, on December 21 when they are the closest, don’t worry, you have several nights to enjoy this conjunction. The window to see these two in the night sky is brief because they drop below the horizon pretty quickly after sunset. Your Storm Center 7 Team will have more details on the sky conditions and timing of this celestial event as we head through the month so check back on-air, online and on our FREE WHIO Weather App!


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