It’s December and with the start of the holiday season people have been exchanging gifts and presents with their loved ones. And now, a present all the way from our solar system is on its way for the earthlings. It is the annual Geminid meteor shower that will lighten up skies this weekend.

Astronomers call it as the best meteor shower in past years because of the number of meteors it produces. This year’s annual show will start on Sunday evening into Monday morning.

The show will most probably start between 9pm and 10 pm and will continue overnight. Experts said it will be easier for stargazers to enjoy the show as this year a crescent moon will set early on Sunday.

Astronomers said that near-record warmth in most of the eastern half of the nation on Sunday will provide a clear view. It could hamper the view in the East and Northwest, they said.

The temperature on Monday morning is not expected to drop below the freezing mark for most areas east of the Mississippi River, according to weather.com. The western US will, however, stay chilly.

Adam Block, who manages the University of Arizona's Mount Lemmon SkyCenter, said, “The shower is showy in the sense that the meteors you get to see are usually very dramatic”.

According to experts, Geminid meteors are very bright and fast as they travel at a speed of 79,000 mph. The shower is famous for producing fireballs, which are meteors brighter than magnitude -4, the same magnitude as the planet Venus.

So far, astronomers have not been able to know the exact origins of the Geminids. But so far, most of the showers have come from icy comet. These appear to come from an odd and rocky, object named Phaeton after the son of the Greek sun god Helios.