Northern Taurid meteor shower 2026

When the Northern Taurids peak in 2026

In 2026 the Northern Taurids peak at 2026-11-12 18:15 UTC, when the Sun reaches solar longitude 230° (J2000). That makes the night of Nov 12–13 the one to watch; the shower is active right now and runs until December 10.

The Moon will be 11% illuminated (waxing crescent) at the peak: dark skies, excellent. In 2027 the peak falls on Nov 13, 2027 with the Moon 98% lit, a worse year for moonlight.

From 45° N the radiant stands 52° high at 10 pm and 41° at 4 am local time, so the evening is as good as or better than pre-dawn. With the radiant at 52°, a ZHR of 5 means roughly 4 meteors per hour under a perfectly dark sky; light pollution and moonlight cut that a lot. The radiant never rises south of about 68° S.

How high the radiant gets

Radiant altitude on the peak night at 10 pm and 4 am local time. The higher the radiant, the more meteors you see.

How to watch the Northern Taurids

Get away from street lights, let your eyes adapt for 20–30 minutes, and look about 40–60° away from the radiant rather than straight at it; meteors appear all over the sky and their trails point back to the radiant (RA 3h 52m, Dec +22°). No telescope or binoculars needed.

Northern Taurid meteors enter the atmosphere at 29 km/s, slowly, so they look like lazy streaks and include a higher share of bright fireballs. The northern branch of the Taurid complex, active through November. Rates are low, but the slow meteors include a higher share of fireballs than most showers, so "Halloween fireballs" are often Taurids.

Northern Taurids peak dates

Peak times come from the mean solar longitude of maximum; real peaks can shift by several hours, and unexpected outbursts happen.

Next meteor showers

• Leonids (Nov 17)
• Geminids (Dec 14)
• Ursids (Dec 22)
• Quadrantids (Jan 4)
• Lyrids (Apr 23)

More sky pages

• Meteor showers 2026 calendar
• Aurora forecast