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Thu, Jan 15, 2026 | Rajab 26, 1447 | Fajr 05:45 | DXB 
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Look: UAE skies light up with thousands of meteors in Geminids shower
Three desert stations recorded the meteors and mapped 401 orbits in a Nasa-backed global collaboration during the peak of the Geminid shower
Much before the fireworks that will usher in 2026, the skies over the UAE bid farewell to 2025 with a spectacular celestial show, as thousands of meteors streaked across the night.
The Geminids meteor shower, one of the strongest of the year, was captured last night (December 13-14) by the UAE Meteor and Meteorite Observation Network.
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Three stations across different locations in the Abu Dhabi desert captured more than 2,000 images of meteors streaking across the skies of the Emirates. Each station is equipped with 17 highly sensitive low-light video cameras. These cameras can detect meteors as faint as magnitude 6.5.
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From these images, the network successfully calculated the trajectories of 401 meteors as they entered Earth’s atmosphere. Determining these orbits reveals the original trajectory of the dust particles around the Sun before they collided with Earth. This process requires the same meteor to be photographed from multiple stations, enabling triangulation to calculate its orbital elements.
After imaging, the stations automatically analyse the brightness and trajectory of each meteor and transmit the data to an astronomical centre in the US. This effort is part of an international collaboration involving similar networks worldwide under Nasa’s supervision.
The images also feature prominent celestial objects such as the Orion, Taurus, Gemini constellations, the Pleiades cluster, Jupiter, and the Moon. Some frames even captured airplanes and multiple meteors simultaneously. Each image was taken with an exposure time of eight seconds.
Ajanta Paul
Ajanta Paul is a Senior Editor on the Digital team. A natural leader and newshound, she thrives in breaking news and high-pressure situations — and enjoys reporting on community issues that matter to UAE residents.
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