Dec. 13-14
Credit (or blame) an asteroid for this one – 3200 Phaethon. It orbits the sun once every 523 days.
One of the oddities here: Unlike comets, asteroids don't tend to give off any dust or gas because they are essentially orbiting rubble piles left over from the formation of the solar system. So what generates the Geminids? Some astronomers suggest they may be watching the asteroid spontaneously disintegrate as repeated passes close to the sun heat and crack otherwise cold rocks and rubble. A similar process – strong heating during the day followed by cold nights – cracks boulders in deserts on Earth.
Under ideal viewing conditions, this shower generates as many as 160 meteors an hour.
