This small meteor shower can only be seen from the northern hemisphere, with between five and ten meteors orbiting the sky per hour.
The peak of the Ursids on the evening of December 21, arriving early in the morning of December 22. The moon will be 50% full. This, combined with the often cloudy December winter nights, could obscure your view of this shower.
If you want the best perspective on the shower, wait for the moon to set around 12:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 22, according to NASA. Then observe the sky for about an hour.
Meteor shower originates from the constellation Ursa Minor, known as the Little Bear, but meteors will be visible scratching across the sky.
The srsids are a relatively new meteor shower, according to the EarthSky.org sky observation guide. Although many of the meteor showers we see throughout the year occur annually for centuries, srsids were not observed until the 20th century.
Meteor shower occurs when the Earth passes close to the orbit of Comet 8P / Tuttle and this year, our next step includes several traces of debris that also follow this comet, according to the American Meteor Society. This could cause more activity during meteor shower.
Don’t look up at the sky. According to the American Meteor Society, aim halfway across the sky.
The Geminid meteor shower is also ongoing until Sunday and the winter solstice occurs a day later, on December 21st.
And don’t forget to keep an eye on the so-called “Christmas star” (which isn’t really a star) on December 21st. At this time, Jupiter and Saturn are closer to our sky than they have been in centuries. This conjunction will make them appear as a double planet during twilight.
