A rare and "intensifying" meteor shower is expected to put on an incredible display across New Zealand skies leading up to Christmas.
The shower, caused by an asteroid, is expected to produce bright meteors on December 15 as the new moon forms and "leftover pieces of comets" travel through our Solar System.
According to Stardome astronomer Rob Davison the Geminid meteor shower is expected to be "one of the best showers that we can see from New Zealand".
"Meteor showers occur when Earth passes through small pieces of natural space debris, according to Stardome," he explained.
"Last year, the Geminids coincided with a last-quarter moon, so it was extremely difficult to view them properly," he said. " Next year there will be a near-full moon, so it will be even harder again."
"What is extra special about this year is that with the new moon, and the right conditions, we should get an extra good view."
Davison recommends moving "as far away" from light pollution as possible to witness the display.
"It is basically a new moon, meaning there will be no interference from moonlight," he said.
"Like light pollution, bright moonlight makes meteors much harder to spot."
He shared his tips and tricks for people planning on catching the display these summer holidays.
"Most of these meteors will not be super bright, so any interference will make them extremely difficult to spot," he said. "If you're in the middle of a town or city, you won't have much luck."
According to Davison no special equipment is needed to view the display.
"Naked eye viewing is by far the best way to see the meteors, so just wrap up warm, head outside, and look roughly north," he recommended.
"The meteors originate from a point within the constellation Gemini," he said.
The display will be visible in the northern sky, peaking at about 3am on Friday, December 15 and will be "the best time to view the shower".
The shower will also be visible at night time a few days either side.
He said the "short, sharp flashes of light" will look a lot like a "shooting star".
"The Geminids meteor shower is a great one for amateur astronomers because it's prolific and the meteors in the shower are slow-moving," he explained. "The shower is also thought to be intensifying each year, and recent showers have seen up to 160 meteors per hour under optimal conditions.
Davison said the number of meteors visible per hour at peak activity is "pretty stable", and there could be up to 120 meteors per hour.
However, he said this would only be seen with "perfectly dark skies".
"You probably won't see any particular colour other than white, especially as our eyes are very bad at seeing colour in the dark," he explained.
"As Gemini will only reach a maximum of about 20 degrees above the horizon, it's estimated the number visible from our latitude will be closer to 40 per hour."
He said the small, fast lights will be bright enough to spot from the corner of an eye.
