Shooting stars
Geminid meteor shower
We saw two or three shooting stars every minute at one point this year, and had a crystal clear, dark sky!
Just in case you don’t know, shooting stars are tiny specs of materials left in the trails, generally of comets but also of asteroids. These particles burn up in Earths atmosphere as we pass through the trails often providing a spectacular light show in the night sky.
The regular showers are given names relating to the constellations they appear to be emanating from The Geminids this week for instance appeared to come from around the two bright stars in Gemini-Castor and Pollux.
Our own tradition is to watch the show drinking a hot chocolate in the garden, but if you book Fox Den or Hare Hideaway, with a stargazing roof you won’t even need to get out of bed!
Best times to see, normally good for a few days either side-
Geminid’s: Around the 14th of December.
This year’s display was amazing and performed best on the 13th.
Other dates –
Perseid’s: around the 12th of August. This is a very reliable show!
Leonid’s: around the 17th and 18th of November. When these are good, they provide the very best show, but they are a little less reliable than the Perseids in my experience.
The Messiah Salisbury Cathedral
Handles festive classical masterpiece – quite long so not for the faint hearted, but a once in a lifetime experience. In the slow bits, you can look around the amazing architecture of the incredible Salisbury Cathedral built between 1220 and 1258. We started with a Christmas meal in the refectory, which gets you in the mood.
Salisbury Cathedral is only about 40 minutes away and worth a visit on it’s own, but tie it in with one of their events to make a full day. Click here for events.
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