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composite image credit & copyright: Jeff Dai (TWAN)



from dark skies above Heilongjiang province in northeastern China, meteors rain down on a wintry landscape in this beautiful composited night scene

the 48 meteors are part of the annual Geminid meteor shower

despite temperatures of -28º degrees C, all were recorded in camera exposures made during the peak hour of the celestial spectacle

they stream away from the shower's radiant high above the horizon near the two bright stars of the zodiacal constellation of the Twins

a very active shower, last year the december 13-14 peak of the Geminids arrived just before the december 16 closest approach of asteroid 3200 Phaethon to planet Earth

mysterious 3200 Phaethon is the Geminid shower's likely parent body








































in apod.nasa.gov/apod