Cascading Meteors over Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona

Cascading Meteors over Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona

This image captures the mesmerizing Geminids meteor shower above the National Science Foundation (NSF) McMath Pierce Solar Telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab, as the Milky Way rises high into the sky. The annual Geminids shower happens when Earth passes through the debris trail of asteroid 3200 Phaethon in December and this debris collides with our atmosphere to then explode into fiery streaks of light. The Geminids is unusual among meteor showers because it is one of two major showers not caused by a comet. Two telescopes at KPNO are used to study asteroids: the UArizona 0.9-meter and 1.8-meter Spacewatch telescopes. The University of Arizona’s Spacewatch Program was founded to explore populations of small objects in the Solar System and to study the statistics of asteroids and comets to investigate the dynamical evolution of the Solar System.

3200 Phaethon is an active Apollo (near-Earth) asteroid with an orbit that brings it closer to the Sun than any other named asteroid. For this reason, it was named after the Greek Hero, Phaëthon, son of the sun god Helios. It is 5.8 km (3.6 mi) in diameter and is the parent body of the Geminids meteor shower of mid-December.

Phaethon was the first asteroid to be discovered using images from a spacecraft. Simon F. Green and John K. Davies discovered it in images from October 11, 1983, while searching Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) data for moving objects. It was formally announced on October 14 in IAUC 3878 along with optical confirmation by Charles T. Kowal, who reported it to be asteroidal in appearance. Its provisional designation was 1983 TB, and it later received the numerical designation and name 3200 Phaethon in 1985.

The decommissioned NSF McMath-Pierce Solar Telescope was the largest solar telescope in the world and is now being given new life as a dynamic astronomy visualization and presentation center focused on astronomy funded by NSF. With the public opening scheduled for mid-2025, visitors can expect an experience built on NOIRLab’s foundational principle of Discovering Our Universe Together.

Rob Sparks, the photographer, is a NOIRLab Audiovisual Ambassador.

Credit: KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/R. Sparks
Release Date: April 2, 2025

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