The Geminids meteor shower is set to light up the skies on Thursday night.  It occurs when the Earth passes through the debris tail of the asteroid 3200 Phaethon. 

A majority of meteor showers usually come from comets, which conduct small chunks of ice that burns in the Earth's atmosphere.  Case in point, Phaethon is an unorthodox type of asteroid that astronomers occasionally call a "rock comet," which heats when it gets close to the sun, giving off dust particles that transform into meteors in the Earth's skies.

For the very first time, Earth may also pass through the back end of another projectile, comet Wirtanen, which should raise meteor activity.  Although scientists still remain uncertain on whether the Earth will head through the tail of Wirtanen, it could still produce a second simultaneous meteor shower, which could potentially be named the Piscids, according to MSN.

"Meteors from the new shower (if any) will be visible in the early evening, with the geminids making their appearance later on and lasting until dawn," stated Bill Cooke, the head of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office via statement.

If Wirtanen does indeed show up, up to 30 meteors per hour could come from it.

In order to directly view the Geminids show, one should stare up into the sky at anytime between midnight and sunrise in their local time zone. 

Stunning yellow streaks are expected to light up the sky during peak hours, with up to 160 meteors per hour slated to appear. The respective meteors are said to come from the constellation Gemini, which should be visible throughout the entire sky.

The Geminids should peak overnight while the moon is at its new phase. Hence, the skies will not reveal any of the moon's glare, which should allow watchers in rural areas to see roughly 100-plus meteors per hour gracing the sky. 

CLICK HERE to watch the Geminids meteor shower via live stream.

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