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After a little break (of 25 years or so) Bob King is celebrating his retirement with a return to The North 103.3's airwaves!After almost 40 years with the Duluth News Tribune, Bob is now retired. But scratch a print guy and you'll find a radio guy; King and then-UMD Planetarium Director Glen Langhorst hosted Startalk on KUMD for several years in the early '90s.Listen for Astro Bob every other Tuesday at 8am on Northland Morning.

Astro Bob's Backyard Astronomy: Prepping for the Geminids

Illustrated map of the night sky and the Geminid meteor shower
Bob King

We're closing in on the winter solstice, which means plenty of time to enjoy the long nights and hours of gloaming.

The solstice will happen at 3:19am on December 21st when the sun will reach its lowest point in the sky, but before that a different astronomical event will take the stage. The Geminids, a meteor shower from the asteroid Phaethon, will be reaching its peak Friday night.

The Geminids are the longest meteor shower of the year, however, this year there is a little prepping and planning to be done. The weather predicts some clouds Friday night along with a full moon, which will drown out the dimmer meteors.

Bob suggests going out Thursday night or early Friday morning in case it is too cloudy on the night of the 13th. Bundle up, appreciate the dark skies, and enjoy viewing the Geminids from any direction or location.

You can hear Astro Bob's Backyard Astronomy every other Tuesday at 8:20am on Northland Morning.

Luke Moravec is the host for Northland Morning on The North 103.3. He’s also a local actor, musician and writer. He loves puzzles, riddles and fun mysteries.
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