Meteor Shower Dates Table
| Shower | Peak night | Active window | Moon at peak | Parent body |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orionids | Oct 21–22, 2026 | Oct 2 – Nov 7 | 74% waxing gibbous | 1P/Halley |
| Southern Taurids | Nov 4–5, 2026 | Sep 20 – Nov 20 | 25% waning crescent | 2P/Encke |
| Northern Taurids | Nov 11–12, 2026 | Oct 20 – Dec 10 | 4% waxing crescent | 2P/Encke |
| Leonids | Nov 16–17, 2026 | Nov 6–30 | 39% waxing crescent | 55P/Tempel-Tuttle |
| Geminids | Dec 13–14, 2026 | Dec 4–17 | 15% waxing crescent | 3200 Phaethon (asteroid) |
| Ursids | Dec 21–22, 2026 | Dec 17–26 | 89% waxing gibbous | 8P/Tuttle |
| Quadrantids | Jan 3–4, 2027 | Dec 28 – Jan 12 | 18% waning crescent | 2003 EH1 (asteroid) |
| Lyrids | Apr 21–22, 2027 | Apr 14–30 | 100% full moon | Comet Thatcher |
| Eta Aquariids | May 5–6, 2027 | Apr 19 – May 28 | 2% waning crescent | 1P/Halley |
| Southern Delta Aquariids | Jul 30–31, 2027 | Jul 12 – Aug 23 | 14% waning crescent | 96P/Machholz |
| Alpha Capricornids | Jul 30–31, 2027 | Jul 3 – Aug 15 | 14% waning crescent | 169P/NEAT |
| Perseids | Aug 12–13, 2027 | Jul 17 – Aug 24 | 79% waxing gibbous | 109P/Swift-Tuttle |
Every named meteor shower of the 2026-2027 season in one table: twelve peak nights copied verbatim from the American Meteor Society's shower calendar, each with its active window and - the column most pages leave out - the moon phase on peak night, because a 100-percent-lit moon erases a shower that paper rates would promise.
Bottom line for this season: the Orionids peak October 21-22, 2026 under a 74 percent waxing gibbous moon, so the year's dark-sky bargains are the Geminids (December 13-14, 15 percent moon) and the Eta Aquariids (May 5-6, 2027, a 2 percent crescent). The Perseids, usually the crowd favorite, fight a 79 percent moon in 2027 - the table lets you see that trade at a glance.
The moon column is the differentiator: shower dates barely move year to year (the same peaks return within a day or two), but the moon does, and it is the single biggest factor between a memorable night and a bust. Pair a dark-moon peak with the new moon pages on this site and you have the whole planning chain.
How to use
- Scan the Moon at peak column first - anything above roughly 60 percent illumination will visually halve the count, whatever the shower's reputation.
- Flip the dark-sky filter to hide heavily moonlit peaks and keep only the rows worth leaving the house for; the toggle remembers your choice.
- The counter shows days to the next peak from today; after the season's last peak it says plainly that the next season's dates post each August on the AMS calendar.
Frequently asked questions
When is the next meteor shower?
The Orionids peak the night of October 21-22, 2026, active October 2 to November 7 - but that night carries a 74 percent waxing gibbous moon, so expect the bright fireballs Orionids are known for rather than high counts. If you can wait, the Geminids on December 13-14 run under a 15 percent crescent.
Why does the same shower peak on roughly the same date every year?
Earth crosses each parent's debris stream at a fixed point in its orbit, so the calendar date repeats within a day or two - Perseids cluster on August 12-13, Geminids on December 13-14. What changes yearly is the moon, which is why this table pins the 2026-2027 moon phases to each peak rather than recycling a generic list.
What do the parent bodies in the last column mean?
Meteors are debris shed by comets (and two asteroids): the Taurids come from comet Encke, the Perseids from Swift-Tuttle, the Orionids and Eta Aquariids from Halley itself, and the Leonids from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle - the same periodic comets our comet return dates table tracks. The two famous exceptions are the Geminids and Quadrantids, fed by the asteroids 3200 Phaethon and 2003 EH1.
What is a ZHR and why is it not in the table?
Zenithal Hourly Rate is the count an ideal observer would see under a perfectly dark sky with the radiant overhead - most major showers quote between 15 and 150. Real-world rates run lower, and moonlight cuts them further, so this table shows the moon instead of the paper number; the AMS shower calendar carries the official per-shower rates.
What time of night should I watch?
The hours after midnight and before dawn, when your side of Earth faces into the stream head-on - counts typically double after 2 a.m. local time. Give your eyes 20 minutes away from phones, lie back facing halfway up the sky, and pick a peak the moon table shows as dark.