# Meteor shower(s) tonight: two for the price of one! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 13, 2012, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921 "2012-12-13T13:04:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/1 "2012-12-13T13:04:14Z")
The annual Geminids meteor shower takes place tonight, and it could be very impressive. [Here is an article](http://www.space.com/18883-new-meteor-shower-piscids.html) describing how a second possible meteor shower may significantly boost the number of meteors visible. > [@](#): > > Skywatchers are already gearing up for a spectacular show from the annual Geminids meteor shower this week, and now astronomers say a new meteor shower’s debut could make for even more shooting stars. NASA officials say a never-before-seen show could come from comet Wirtanen… ---
**Author:** ![I\_Like\_Pie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9f8e36/32.png) [@I\_Like\_Pie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Like_Pie)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/2 "2012-12-13T23:31:50Z")
I’m planning on watching! ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/3 "2012-12-14T01:58:26Z")
Completely socked in here (NE Florida). ☹ ---
**Author:** ![I\_Like\_Pie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9f8e36/32.png) [@I\_Like\_Pie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Like_Pie)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/4 "2012-12-14T03:41:53Z")
Seeing a couple every minute here in SE Indiana. ---
**Author:** ![BobArrgh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobarrgh/32/2881_2.png) [@BobArrgh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobArrgh)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/5 "2012-12-14T03:50:07Z")
South of Kansas City, here. I just saw 4 in about 30-45 minutes. One was pretty big, lasting about 1-2 seconds. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/6 "2012-12-14T03:55:21Z")
11,200 in elevation in the Colorado Rockies. No town for miles no City for 100 miles. It’s cold, all dressed up and am just going to turn the lights out in the house and watch. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/7 "2012-12-14T05:43:56Z")
Went out for 5 minutes around 9pm here in TN. Saw one flash by, I think, then another that was quite bright and slow-moving. The earlier ones should be due to the comet debris rather than the regularly-scheduled event, and they’re supposed to be slow moving. Saw a shower some 20 years back. Perseids. Quite nice, but the one I saw tonight was nicer then the 100 or so I saw that night. ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/8 "2012-12-14T08:07:35Z")
It’s 3am EST. Just got back in from the country with my son. We sought out a dark, open area to view from. Not the hundred an hour we hoped for - when does that ever happen? - but we saw a lot. From minor and gone to bigger, 3 second sky-crossers. A little surprised my 19yo agreed to go, but we had nice time chatting, listening to coytes raid a chicken coop in the distance, and then the utter quiet and blackness of the country. When I said “I want to live out here. I love this.”, he replied “Not me.” When I asked him why not, he just said “It’s not my scene, Daddy-O.” 😃 Truly Good Times. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/9 "2012-12-14T08:13:16Z")
I normally have a great view for these things. I live on the outskirts of Vegas and if I drive an hour or two north you can get to the point where there are no man made lights within 20 miles of you. Nice clean (depending on weather) desert air. Got good photography equipment too. Unfortuntaely we’re having 1 of our 3 rainy days all year. No view of the sky anywhere. I was thinking of going anyway, since the camera gear is all weatherproof, but I’m worried I’d drive an hour to get out there and find everything is too cloudy to see anything anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/10 "2012-12-14T09:49:15Z")
I live near Albuquerque. We’re at 5000 ft. elevation and most of the time we have very good conditions for skygazing. Not tonight, however. It’s completely overcast. We’re supposed to get some much-needed rain throughout the day Friday, so that will be good. But no meteor shower. ---
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/11 "2012-12-14T10:20:55Z")
I have new moon, clear sky… just a bit below freezing… we’ve been getting them all night. A lot of them. I didn’t know about it being a regularly scheduled event and was pondering if this is the beginning of the Dec 21, 2012 stuff as I watched them on my way to and from the store (we don’t normally get such a major show). Then I Googled and saw that isn’t the case. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/12 "2012-12-14T19:00:15Z")
I bundled up and stared for maybe ten minutes but wasn’t able to spot any meteors. I’m in the sodium vapor bathed Chicago city limits for strike one. Strike two is that I’m barely five miles from Ohare airport and planes flying by resemble meteors for a split second. As you can see, these are suboptimal viewing conditions. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2012, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meteor-shower-s-tonight-two-for-the-price-of-one/643921/13 "2012-12-14T19:31:05Z")
The Mrs. and I headed out for the hot tub under the stars last night at 9 PM. By 9:15 we’d seen a dozen shooting stars, and decided to head in and make our own sparks.