MOSCOW, December 12. /TASS/. The Geminid meteor shower will peak on the night of December 13-14, when astronomers expect up to 150 "shooting stars" per hour to appear in the night sky, while observers will be able to view the natural phenomenon in cloudless weather on the southern horizon across the entire expanse of Russia, the Moscow Planetarium’s press office told TASS.

"The night of December 13-14 will be marked by the most beautiful and numerous meteor shower of the year from the constellation of Gemini. Some 150 meteors per hour are forecast. The Geminids can be seen all night above the southern horizon. In clear weather, bright meteors will be visible throughout Russia," the planetarium said.

The Geminid meteor shower surpasses all other annual meteor showers in terms of the number of "shooting stars." The Geminids are bright white meteors, or flashes in the sky from the burning of small celestial bodies in the Earth's atmosphere. The source of the particles is the object 3200 Phaethon, which occupies an intermediate position between asteroids and comets.

With only a waning crescent moon expected to be visible in the night sky during the meteor shower, no lunar illumination will obscure observers’ view of the natural "light show."