"If I had a dollar for every time the clouds ruined a celestial event I could retire!"
Matthew Woods from the Perth Observatory is joking about the cluttered skies that obscured the Leonids meteor shower earlier this year and the supermoon earlier this month over Perth, saying both events were ruined at the last minute.
"You get clear skies all week and then clouds show up like they just knew. We like to joke that we don't trust meteorologists as far as we can throw them!"
Despite Mr Woods' tongue-in-cheek doubts, mostly clear skies are predicted for Wednesday night so people in Perth and across WA should have a good view of the Geminids meteor shower.
"The Geminids are THE meteor shower to see in the southern hemisphere and on the night of the 13th and 14th of December they'll reach their peak," the Observatory said.
"The shower is active for a two week period from the 4th of December to the 17th of December and with the Moon already set, you'll get to see anywhere from 70 to 120 meteors per hour.
The Geminids Meteor Shower is peaking tonight. You can find out how to see them with our 'What's In December's Night Skies' article https://t.co/zpytCGhzkF #Perth #WA #Australia #perthnews pic.twitter.com/gT5wpDQt0k??? Perth Observatory (@perthobs) December 13, 2017
"The meteor shower appears to come from the Gemini constellation with the streaks being caused by tiny dust particulars and meteors hitting our atmosphere at tremendous speed and burning up due to the friction."
Mr Woods said the best places to see the Geminids is at the Observatory itself and in the Perth hills, particularly places like Mundaring Weir, South Ledge lookout, the Canning and Serpentine Dams and Lake Leschenaultia - anywhere that's away from light pollution.
For those on the coastal plain, Mr Woods said heading to the beach or even a local park could be a good option.
"The Geminids will be visible from around ten pm to four am and the best times will be be between eleven and two. Look to the North East to begin with, then track to the North and North West," he said.
"It's been call after call to be honest! We have around 75 people coming to the Observatory tonight but there will be the inevitable drops ins. It's going to be a long night, but we love it."
