Get ready to make plenty of wishes for the holiday season, as the annual Geminid meteor shower peaks on the nights of December 13 and 14 under nearly ideal conditions, delivering a flurry of shooting stars. (Check out some of the other must-see sky shows in December.)

The Geminids are among the strongest and most reliable sky shows, even at times besting August's famed Perseid meteor shower. This year’s show promises to be especially exciting: With the waxing crescent moon setting between 10 and 11 p.m. local time, deep darkness in the late-night hours should allow stargazers to catch dozens of meteors dashing across the skies.

The official peak of the Geminids occurs around 7:30 a.m. ET (4:30 a.m. PT)