RAS question
The Geminid meteor shower originates from which celestial body?
Correct answer: (B) Asteroid 3200 Phaethon.
The Geminid meteor shower originates from Asteroid 3200 Phaethon.
Explanation
NASA identifies the Geminids as a meteor shower whose origin is 3200 Phaethon, described as an asteroid or possible "rock comet". That is the point exam setters usually test: the Geminids are not linked to an ordinary comet in the way most meteor showers are. NASA's page states that unlike most meteor showers, which originate from comets, the Geminids originate from asteroid 3200 Phaethon. It also notes why the classification is interesting: Phaethon has a comet-like, highly elliptical orbit, but it does not develop a cometary tail and its spectra look like a rocky asteroid. So the substantive answer is the asteroid 3200 Phaethon.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Halley's Comet is wrong because NASA gives the Geminids' origin as asteroid 3200 Phaethon, not a comet.
- (C) Comet Swift-Tuttle is wrong because choosing any comet misses the NASA-stated exception that the Geminids originate from an asteroid.
- (D) Comet Tempel-Tuttle is wrong because the Geminids are specifically traced to 3200 Phaethon, while this option names a different cometary body.
Concept
This tests the basic astronomy distinction between comet-origin meteor showers and the asteroid-origin Geminids. RAS Science and Technology questions often use such source-body pairings because one familiar-looking celestial name can change the answer.