Geminid meteor shower LIVE STREAM: Watch the Geminids 2018 online here

The Geminids is one of 2018’s most spectacular meteor showers. The falling stars will be most visible overnight between December 13 and 14, with its UK peak time expected in the early hours of December 14. The meteor shower will showcase as many as 100 meteors per hour and this year could be the best year ever to watch the incredible Geminids.

If you don’t want to head outside in the freezing weather tonight but still want to have a glance of the meteor showers, you can watch the Geminids through NASA’s live stream below.

But if you are heading outside, remember to dress warmly.

For the best possible views, you should also try to get as far away from city lights as possible.

You should try to give your eyes between 30 and 45 minutes to adjust to the dark and try not to look at your phone screen as it could mess up your night vision.

You do not need any specialist equipment to see the Geminids.

However, bringing a blanket could be a good idea as you will get the best views if you lie on your back looking straight up.

Unlike other meteor displays, the Geminid meteor shower run throughout the night so you do not have to necessarily stay up past your usual bedtime to watch as the falling stars will be visible from sunset on Thursday night.

On its website, the Royal Observatory states: “This year, the peak of the Geminids coincides with a waxing crescent Moon, meaning you will have a good chance of seeing this shower.

“You can look out for the shower from sunset as the radiant is in the northern hemisphere, although the early hours of 14 December are the expected peak time.”

The Geminids will be the last of 2018’s major showers and are thought to be intensifying every year.

NASA astronomer Bill Cooke told USA Today the Geminid meteor shower used to peak at just 30 meteors per hour, but Jupiter’s gravity has brought the shower closer to our planet, increasing the rate of shooting stars with up to 100 meteors per hour.

The shooting stars will enter the Earth’s atmosphere at speeds of up to 70 kilometres per second (43.5 miles per second.)

The Geminids are considered different from other meteor showers in being multi-coloured, with white and yellow and a few green, red and blue lights.

The Royal Observatory Greenwich (ROG) said the colours “are partly caused by the presence of traces of metals like sodium and calcium, the same effect that is used to make fireworks colourful”.

The meteor shower is caused by dust and debris strewn in the path of the asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which itself orbits Earth every 1.4 years.

The Geminids were first spotted almost 200 years ago in 1833; much more recently than other showers such as the Perseids and Leonids.