It might be cold out at night in mid-December, but stargazers who are willing to brave the low temperatures will get to enjoy one of the most spectacular shows of the year.

The Geminids meteor show is now under way, and continues through Dec. 21.

The shower is so named because the radiant point - the place in the sky where the shooting stars appear to come from when viewed from Earth - “nearly coincides with the bright star Castor in [the constellation] Gemini,” according to EarthSky.org .

“That’s a chance alignment, of course, as Castor lies some 52 light-years away,” the website reads. “An asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon is responsible for the Geminid meteor shower.”

The Geminids meteor shower is also unusual because most showers come from comets, not asteroids.

But the best time

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