New meteor shower to grace Earth’s skies with comet debris in action; All we know

Netizens across the globe may be treated to a new mesmerising sight next week with a promising meteor shower on the run. The meteor shower might appear in the night sky making the moment worth witnessing on December 12, around the Southern hemisphere of the Earth.

As our planet passes through a cloud of debris left by a comet, Earth might witness this moment. The comet is named 46P/Wirtanen, but has no previous showers in its history. These meteor showers will appear streaming from the direction of the star Lambda-Sculptorids.



This comet was discovered in 1948 and revolves around the sun every 5.4 years, making it faster than the other comets. Some comets take years to orbit around the big sun, such as the Halley’s Comet, which takes approximately 75 years. However, the meteor shower is expected to be very weak, possibly making the shower not visible at all.

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Meteor showers are mainly created when our planet passes through a cloud of debris which is left behind by comets as they come too close to the sun. The radiation from the star heats them, whereas the solid material within the comet turns into a gas. This process is called sublimation. This gas thus erupts from the outer shell and escapes the icy comet. It blows the debris free and forms several tails which are also known as comas or auras.

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These beautiful meteor showers are named after the objects in the sky. The shower is likely to occur between 8:00 and 12:30 UT. However, the exact time is yet to be determined.