Why the Geminids are getting brighter every single year

Space · Published 30 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Most meteor showers are the debris of dying comets, but the Geminids are different. They are born from a mysterious "rock comet" and are actually becoming more intense over time due to a cosmic tug-of-war involving the gravity of Jupiter.

The Geminids are a premier annual meteor shower peaking between December 13 and 14. While they were first recorded in 1833—with only 10 to 20 meteors per hour—they have grown into a major celestial event. Under perfect conditions today, observers can see up to 120 meteors per hour. These meteors are notably bright, fast, and often display a distinct yellow color as they streak across the sky at velocities of about 22 miles (35 kilometers) per second.

Unlike the majority of meteor showers, the Geminids originate from an asteroid: 3200 Phaethon. This object is a scientific anomaly; while it has a highly elliptical orbit like a comet, it lacks a cometary tail and possesses a rocky spectrum. Scientists refer to it as a "rock comet" or a "dead comet." The debris it sheds is significantly denser than typical cometary dust, measuring about 2-3 gm/cc compared to the 0.3 gm/cc found in comets. This asteroid takes roughly 1.4 years to orbit the Sun.

The shower's increasing intensity is a result of orbital mechanics. NASA astronomer Bill Cooke noted that Jupiter's gravity has been tugging the stream of particles from 3200 Phaethon closer to Earth's path over the centuries. While the meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Gemini (the "radiant"), they are visible across the entire night sky. To see them best, viewers are advised to look away from the radiant itself, as meteors appearing from that specific point often have shorter trains and are harder to distinguish.

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