How to watch the Geminid meteor shower peaking this weekend

The night sky is about to be the stage for a stellar performance. The Geminid meteor shower, an annual celestial event featuring hundreds of shooting stars, is set to peak this weekend.

" The Geminids are probably the most underrated and prolific meteor shower that we have," said Kelly Beatty, senior editor of Sky & Telescope Magazine.

Beatty said the Geminids are particularly spectacular because of the amount of meteors people can see. When stargazing from a dark location, he said sky gazers can expect to see a meteor every minute or so during the peak. NASA predicts up to about 120 meteors per hour could be visible.

The meteors falling during the Geminids are debris that come from Phaethon, an asteroid with characteristics of a comet.

" These meteor showers tend to occur when these comets come near the sun and the heat of the sun drives off gas and particles that then get scattered along the comet's orbit," Beatty explained. "And when we plow through that orbit every mid-December, we get a whole bunch of meteors all at once."

The meteors appear to radiate from the constellation Gemini, giving them their name.

The shower will start when the constellation is above the horizon. The celestial show is expected to kick into high gear the night of Dec. 13 into the following morning, reaching peak activity around 3 a.m.

"Boston couldn't be in a better spot for this year's shower," Beatty said.

The moon will not be in the sky during the peak and the sky will still be dark 3 a.m., allowing for more meteors to show off.

If clouds roll in during the peak time, Beatty said many meteors will still be visible in the day before and after.

For those hoping to catch sight of the shooting stars, darkness is key. In a darker spot, gazers will be able to see the faint meteors along with the bright ones.

Those looking to the sky will have the best shot of seeing more away from sources of bright light.

" And don't — for heaven and sakes — don't turn on your porch light," said Beatty. He said some people go to local soccer fields or baseball diamonds to get away from street lights.

While the meteors appear to come from Gemini, Beatty said the best place to look is look wherever is darkest point in the sky, which is usually directly up.

The shower can be seen with the naked eye, and telescopes and binoculars are not particularly helpful for viewing the shower, Beatty said.

"You want have the widest view possible and that's provided by your own eyes," he said. "Trust them. They can be a very dependable, astronomical instrument, especially in this case."

Beatty also suggested bringing a lounge chair and dressing warmly to watch the show.