Geminids are initially cracked by atmospheric thermal stress

Astronomical Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, Fričova 298, 251 65 Ondřejov, Czech Republic

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Received: 15 October 2025
Accepted: 4 December 2025

Abstract

Context. Geminids have the highest bulk density of all major meteor showers and their mechanical strength appears to depend on their mass. They are also the most active annual shower, enabling detailed studies of the dependence of their physical and mechanical properties on mass.

Aims. We calculated the fragmentation cascades of 39 bright Geminid fireballs, as well as faint video meteors, to derive fragmentation pressures and other physical properties characterizing the meteoroids, such as their bulk densities. Our goal is to describe the mechanical properties across a broad range of initial masses and explain the cause of the observed behavior.

Methods. We used a physical fragmentation model with a semiautomatic method based on parallel genetic algorithms to fit the radiometric and regular light curve and dynamics data. We also calculated the thermal stress of model bodies with the type of physical properties and trajectories as the observed Geminids. Then, we compared the outcomes of these simulations to our observations.

Results. We find that the Geminids are probably cracked by thermal stress in the atmosphere first and then eroded by mechanical forces. The most compact Geminids are in the 20–200 g mass range. The largest observed meteoroids have a wide range of grain sizes, from about 20 μm to large, non-fragmenting parts of 1–20 mm in size. The derived bulk densities range from about 1400 to 2800 kg m⁻³ for smaller meteoroids and approach the assumed grain density of 3000 kg m⁻³ for larger Geminids.