When is the next meteor shower?
The Leonids, peaking November 17
In 13 days: Nov 17, 23:45 UT, ZHR ≈15, Moon 55% lit. From New York the best window is 2:40 am–5:50 am on the night of Tuesday, November 17–18, about 10 meteors an hour from a dark site. Best time for your city →
The year in meteor showers
November 2026 onwardComing up
Meteor shower calendar 2026–2027
What's active tonight →| Shower | Active | Peak | ZHR | Moon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orionids | Oct 2 – Nov 7 | Oct 21, 2026 ~18h UT | 20+ | – |
| Southern Taurids | Sep 20 – Nov 20 | Nov 5, 2026 ~18h UT | 5–10 | 12% |
| Northern Taurids | Oct 20 – Dec 10 | Nov 12, 2026 ~18h UT | 5 | 11% |
| Leonids | Nov 6 – Nov 30 | Nov 17, 2026 23:45 UT | ≈15 | 55% |
| Geminids | Dec 4 – Dec 20 | Dec 14, 2026 14:00 UT | 150 | 25% |
| Ursids | Dec 17 – Dec 26 | Dec 22, 2026 22:00 UT | 10 | 98% |
| Quadrantids | Dec 28 – Jan 12 | Jan 4, 2027 03:25 UT | 80 (60–200) | 12% |
| Lyrids | Apr 14 – Apr 30 | Apr 23, 2027 ~01h UT | 18 | 95% |
| Eta Aquariids | Apr 19 – May 28 | May 6, 2027 09:00 UT | 50 (40–80+) | 0% |
| Alpha Capricornids | Jul 3 – Aug 15 | Jul 31, 2027 ~19h UT | 5 | 4% |
| Southern Delta Aquariids | Jul 12 – Aug 23 | Jul 31, 2027 ~19h UT | 25 | 4% |
| Perseids | Jul 17 – Aug 24 | Aug 13, 2027 09:00 UT | 110+ | 87% |
| Draconids | Oct 6 – Oct 10 | Oct 9, 2027 07:00 UT | 5 | 67% |
| Orionids | Oct 2 – Nov 7 | Oct 22, 2027 ~00h UT | 20 | 58% |
| Southern Taurids | Sep 20 – Nov 20 | Nov 6, 2027 ~01h UT | 5–10 | 47% |
| Northern Taurids | Oct 20 – Dec 10 | Nov 13, 2027 ~00h UT | 5 | 98% |
| Leonids | Nov 6 – Nov 30 | Nov 18, 2027 06:00 UT | 15+ | 80% |
| Geminids | Dec 4 – Dec 20 | Dec 14, 2027 ~19h UT | 150 | 98% |
| Ursids | Dec 17 – Dec 26 | Dec 23, 2027 04:00 UT | 10 | 22% |
Peak dates and times in UT (Universal Time, the same as GMT). A time marked ~ is computed from the solar longitude the IMO lists. ZHR is the rate under ideal conditions; see the shower pages for what to expect from your city. Moon: illuminated fraction at the peak.
How to read this
A meteor shower happens when Earth crosses the dust left along a comet's (or asteroid's) orbit. The meteors seem to come from one point in the sky, the radiant. The higher the radiant, the more meteors you see; with the radiant at 30°, you see half the ZHR at best. A bright Moon hides the fainter meteors, and city light hides most of them.
The dates come from the International Meteor Organization's working list, the reference used by observers worldwide. For each shower we compute, for each city, when the sky is dark, how high the radiant is and where the Moon is, hour by hour, and turn the ZHR into a rough hourly count.
Meteor showers by city
The coming year computed for 738 cities: best nights, times and the Moon. Search your city at the top of the page, or pick one below.
United States · 442 cities
United Kingdom · 102 cities
Canada · 55 cities
Australia · 58 cities
New Zealand · 20 cities
India · 40 cities
South Africa · 10 cities
Questions
When is the next meteor shower?
The next major peak is the Leonids around November 17, 2026 (Nov 17, 23:45 UT), with a ZHR of ≈15 according to the International Meteor Organization. Minor showers are active on most nights.
What is the best meteor shower of the year?
The Geminids in December (ZHR about 150) and the Perseids in August (ZHR about 100–110) are the strongest reliable showers. The Quadrantids in early January can match them but only for a few hours. The Moon decides how many you actually see: in 2026 the Geminid peak has only a thin crescent Moon, while in 2027 it falls at Full Moon.
What does ZHR mean?
Zenithal hourly rate: the number of meteors one observer would see in an hour under a perfectly dark sky (stars to magnitude 6.5) with the radiant overhead. Real rates are almost always lower, because the radiant is lower and skies are brighter. Our pages convert the ZHR into an estimate for your city and night.
What time is best to watch a meteor shower?
Usually after midnight and before dawn, when your side of the Earth faces forward along its orbit and the radiant is high. The Geminids are the main exception: their radiant is up from mid-evening. Each shower page gives the best window for your city.
Do I need a telescope?
No. Use your eyes, lie back and take in as much sky as possible, away from lights. Give your eyes 20 minutes to adapt and avoid your phone screen.
Dates, peak times, ZHR and radiant positions: International Meteor Organization, Meteor Shower Calendar 2026 and 2027 (J. Rendtel, ed.), working list of visual meteor showers. Where the IMO gives no peak time, it is the moment the Sun reaches the listed solar longitude. Darkness, Moon and radiant height computed with Skyfield and JPL DE440. Hourly rates are our estimates from the ZHR and are uncertain; real rates vary from year to year. We do not forecast clouds.