Meteor Shower 2026 Peaks May 5-6, Best Viewing May 6
The meteor shower 2026 Eta Aquarids will peak overnight on May 5-6, 2026, with the best chance to spot shooting stars in the predawn hours of May 6. The shower stays active from April 19 through May 28, but the strongest display comes before dawn, when its radiant reaches its highest altitude for viewers in the northern hemisphere.
Stargazers in the southern hemisphere tropics may see up to 50 meteors per hour under ideal conditions. In the northern hemisphere, viewing is less favorable, with 10-30 meteors possible and moonlight likely to hide dimmer streaks from view.
May 6 Viewing Window
The timing gives viewers a narrow window. In the U.S., the shower radiant in Aquarius rises above the eastern horizon to the left of the waning moon roughly three hours after midnight, placing the best viewing in the hours before sunrise.
The 84%-lit lunar disk rises above the southeastern horizon shortly after midnight on the night of May 5-6. That leaves the moon in the sky at the same time as the shower, and it may outshine many of the fainter shooting stars.
Southern Hemisphere Tropics
The shower will be strongest for viewers in the southern hemisphere tropics, where dark skies can reveal far more activity than northern observers may see. The difference is enough to change the experience from a steady display to a more limited watch for fainter meteors.
Eta Aquarid meteors are known for leaving persistent glowing trains in their wakes, giving observers a longer look at each streak across the sky. For anyone planning to watch, the practical move is simple: get outside before dawn on May 6 and face the eastern sky.
Halley’s Comet Debris
The shower comes from Earth moving through debris shed by Halley’s Comet. That debris stream is what produces the annual display, and 2026 places the broad peak squarely on the night of May 5-6.
For readers in the northern hemisphere, the main constraint is the moon, not the calendar. The window is there, but the bright 84%-lit lunar disk will make the faintest meteors harder to catch.
