2025 Is a Year Full of Meteor Showers: Here’s When the Next One Is Due
Opportunities abound in 2025, including full schedule meteor shower. They appear on time every year like clockwork, which means meteor trips can be planned months in advance. Here’s what happened and how to watch.
Viewing Tips
To see the most meteors during any meteor shower, the first tip is to get as far away from big cities as is logically possible – this also applies to suburbanites. Light pollution is the enemy of space viewing, and most meteor showers are barely visible in suburban areas, let alone big cities. From there, you need to find the radiant — also known as the shower’s origin point — and point your eyes in that direction. Moonlight can also be a negative factor, but since meteor showers occur on specific days, it’s up to Mother Nature whether moonlight will affect viewing.
In August 2019, a meteorite was seen streaking over Trona Pinnacle near Death Valley, California, during the annual Perseid meteor shower.
Quadrantid meteor shower
when: As of January 16
Peak dates: January 2-3
Maximum meteor rate: 120 meteors per hour
radiation: Big Dipper
At the beginning of the new year, on January 2 and 3, the Quadrantid meteor shower will reach its peak. This is one of the largest meteor showers of the year, producing up to 120 meteors per hour. These meteors came from the 2003 EH asteroid as the Earth drifted in its wake.
gamma norm
when: February 25th to March 28th
Peak dates: March 14-15
Maximum meteor rate: 6 meteors per hour
radiation: norma
The Gammanomids are a small meteor shower that occurs in late February and much of March. It is provided by the comet C/1913 R1 (Cromelin). This is one of the less exciting showers this year. Its radiant point is the constellation Norma in the southern hemisphere. However, avid skygazers can see some meteors on the horizon during the dark nights during peak meteor season in mid-March, and may see more in the coming days and weeks. Most people probably won’t see anything, but it’s still there, throwing meteors.
Lyrid meteor shower
The Milky Way and shooting stars from the annual April Lyrid meteor shower are visible in the night sky over Fehmarn Castle on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn in northern Germany in 2018.
when: April 15 to April 30
Peak dates: April 21-22
Maximum meteor rate: 18 meteors per hour
radiation: Lyra
Things are looking up again with the April Lyrid meteor shower. Its radiator is the constellation Lyra, which rises in the eastern sky each night during its course. This meteor is a bit larger than most, with up to 18 meteors per hour. Every April, Earth passes through Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, bringing this meteor shower to Earth’s citizens. Interestingly, meteors from the Lyrids tend to have no trails but can produce some very bright fireballs.
And Aquarius
when: April 20 to May 21
Peak dates: May 3-4
Maximum meteor rate: 50 meteors per hour
radiation: aquarius
1P/Halley’s Comet, also known as Halley’s Comet, is the source of the eta Aquarids meteor shower, which is the largest meteor shower that occurs in spring, with up to 50 meteors per hour. The only downside is that its radiant point – the constellation Aquarius – doesn’t rise in the southeastern sky until around 4 a.m. local time, which means you’ll have to wake up very early or stay up late to catch it. On the plus side, the moon will have set by then, which means it won’t obscure the view of this meteor shower.
Alpha Capricornid meteor swarm
when: July 12 to August 12
Peak dates: July 29-30
Maximum meteor rate: 5 meteors per hour
radiation: Capricorn
The Alpha Capricornids are a small meteor shower originating from the comet 169P/NEAT. This isn’t a strong shower, but it’s worth noting that it can produce some pretty large fireballs. It is equally evident in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The star’s radiant is Capricornus, which streaks across the southern sky and is visible all night during its peak. Fortunately, the moon isn’t too full, so it doesn’t block the view too much.
Delta Aquarius Southern Meteor Shower
when: July 28 to August 12
Peak dates: July 29-30
Maximum meteor rate: 25 meteors per hour
radiation: aquarius
The southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower often obscures the Alpha Capricornid meteor shower. This meteor shower peaks a day or two after it officially begins, then tapers off in mid-August. Its early peak falls on the same day as the Alpha Capricornid meteor shower, so if you see a meteor on July 29 or 30, it could be from either of them. The radiant point of this meteor shower is the constellation Aquarius, which is right next to the constellation Capricornus, making these two meteor showers a perfect pairing. Researchers aren’t 100 percent sure which comet is responsible for the southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower, although the best guess right now is 96P/Machholz.
Perseid meteor shower
In this undated image, star trails and meteors from the Perseid meteor shower are seen above the small Oxfordshire village of Sutton Courtney.
when: July 17 to August 23
Peak dates: August. 12 to 13
Maximum meteor rate: 100 meteors per hour
radiation: Perseus
The Perseid meteor shower is one of the most important space events of the summer. It comes from comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle and is one of the busiest meteor showers of the year. Plus, it happens in the summer, which is perfect meteor shower weather. The radiant point is the constellation Perseus, which rises relatively early in the evening in the northeastern sky and remains awake throughout the night. The only downside is that at the height of the Perseid meteor shower in 2025, the moon will be nearly full, making it more difficult to see the smaller meteors.
Southern Taurids Meteor Shower
when: September 23rd to November 4th
Peak dates: October 10-11
Maximum meteor rate: 5 meteors per hour
radiation: Taurus
The Southern Taurids are one of the longest meteor showers of the year, lasting up to a month. This is not a particularly active meteor shower, but since it occurs during several other meteor showers, you may spot one of them while looking for another one. Comet 2P/Encke fuels this one and peaks just a few weeks before Halloween. It pairs with the Northern Taurids to form the Taurids. However, they peak on different days, so they are often listed as separate meteor showers.
Orionid meteor shower
when: October 2 to November 12
Peak dates: October 22-23
Maximum meteor rate: 20 meteors per hour
radiation: Orion
The Orionids are a fairly active meteor shower that mainly occurs in October. Like the Eta Aquariids, it comes from the famous Comet Halley. Unlike the Eta Aquariids, the Orionids come from the constellation Orion, which rises in the eastern sky in October. Additionally, the moon is nearly new, so it will have one of the darkest skies of this year’s meteor shower.
Draco
when: October 6th to October 10th
Peak dates: October 8
Maximum meteor rate: 10 meteors per hour
radiation: Draco
The Draconids are a small meteor shower and the shortest meteor shower on the list, lasting four days. It comes from the comet 21/P Giacobini-Zimmer and has a pretty good peak of about 10 meteors per hour. The peak occurs two days after the shower begins and two days after the shower ends. The radiant point of the Draconids is in the constellation Draco, between the Big and Little Dippers, so it’s relatively easy to find in the night sky.
Northern Taurid meteor shower
when: October 13th to December 1st
Peak dates: November 8 to 9
Maximum meteor rate: 5 meteors per hour
radiation: Taurus
The Northern Taurids are the other half of the Taurids, this time lasting longer, lasting from mid-October until December. It peaks during its run around November 8, a few weeks later than in southern areas. Otherwise, both are effectively the same. They are both fueled by comet 2P/Encke and at their best produce about 5 meteors per hour. Currently, researchers believe that this meteor shower originates from a different part of Comet Encke’s path, which is why it is often listed separately from its southern cousin.
Leonid meteor shower
when: November 3 to December 2
Peak dates: November 16-17
Maximum meteor rate: 15 meteors per hour
radiation: leo
Just days after the Northern Taurids peak, the Leonids will also peak. The Leonid meteor shower is produced by the comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle and comes from the constellation Leo, which rises in the eastern sky around 2 a.m. local time for most of its run. This is a meteor shower larger than the Taurids but smaller than the Orionids. Since all four meteor showers intersect during the first week of November, it can be difficult to tell which meteor shower comes from. This is especially true since the constellations of Taurus, Leo, and Orion are all in the eastern sky this time of year. The Leonids often have fast, bright meteors that leave a trail, which may be the only way to distinguish the Leonids from the other three meteor showers.
Geminid meteor shower
when: December 4th to December 20th
Peak dates: December 14-15
Maximum meteor rate: 120 meteors per hour
radiation: Gemini
The Geminid meteor shower is one of the largest meteor showers of the year, peaking less than two weeks before Christmas. It is produced by the comet 3200 Phaethon and can show up to 120 meteors per hour under the right conditions. The Geminids are known for their brighter, slower-moving meteors, which makes them easier to see in brighter areas like cities or suburbs. It takes place during the colder months, but when viewed from outside the big cities, it makes for quite a show.
Ursidae
when: December 17 to December 26
Peak dates: December 22-23
Maximum meteor rate: 10 meteors per hour
radiation: Little Dipper
The Ursid meteor shower begins after the Geminid meteor shower peaks and lasts until the day after Christmas. Since the Geminid meteor shower ends before Christmas, statistically if you’ve ever seen a Christmas movie with a shooting star in it, there’s a good chance it’s from the Ursid meteor shower. The Little Dipper meteor shower reaches its peak on the evening of December 22, and is clearly visible in the night sky for much of the night. Like the Draconids, it disappears almost as quickly as it appeared, lasting only nine days in total.
Quadrantids
when:: December 12, 2025 to January 12, 2026
Peak dates: January 3-4, 2026
Maximum meteor rate: 120 meteors per hour
radiation: Big Dipper
The year ends the same as it began with the Quadrant Meteor Shower. It starts in early December and lasts until the New Year. So while it’s true that it’s the only meteor shower that occurs twice a year, the peak is always in the first few days of January. Otherwise, it is the same meteor shower as the Quadrant meteor shower listed above. So we’re going to use this space to convey an interesting fact. Most meteor showers are powered by comets, which are large chunks of ice floating in the universe, leaving long trails that produce meteors when the Earth passes through them. However, the Quadrantid meteor shower is fueled by 2003 EH, which is an asteroid, not a comet. Researchers believe that 2003 EH may have been a comet that became extinct and became an asteroid.
