The Eta Aquariid meteor shower is visible every year in early May, when Earth encounters debris of ice and dust left behind by the famous Comet 1P/Halley. The shower favors observers in the Southern Hemisphere.
Eta Aquariid meteor shower in 2026
Activity period: The Eta Aquariid meteor shower will be active from April 19 to May 28 and will peak on the night of May 5-6, 2026.
When to see: As seen from mid-southern latitudes, the Eta Aquariid radiant—the point from which the meteors appear to radiate—lies low in the east around 2:00 a.m. local time and reaches its highest point in the northeastern sky in the early morning. So the shower will be best visible during the pre-dawn hours on May 6, 2026, when the radiant climbs high in the sky.
Note for observers: Unlike the Quadrantids in January or the Lyrids in April, the Eta Aquariid meteor shower does not have a sharp peak but a broad, rounded maximum that can last up to about 36 hours. As a result, you can expect a high number of meteors during the pre-dawn hours of May 5, 6, and 7.
Expected meteors during peak activity: The Eta Aquariids are a strong shower when viewed from the Southern Hemisphere, producing around 50 meteors per hour during peak activity under ideal conditions.
Moon phase during peak activity: In 2026, during the peak night, a waning gibbous moon will rise in the evening and remain visible for the rest of the night. As a result, moonlight will severely interfere with the Eta Aquariids this year. Try to observe the shower from a location in the moon’s shadow.
Where to look: Eta Aquariid meteors radiate from near the star Eta Aquarii in the zodiac constellation Aquarius. However, you don’t need to identify Eta Aquarii or Aquarius in order to observe the shower.
The Eta Aquariid meteor shower will be visible across the sky during the pre-dawn hours, when the radiant climbs high in the sky.
View from the Northern Hemisphere: As seen from mid-northern latitudes, the Eta Aquariid radiant rises in the east around 2:30 a.m. local time and reaches low above the southeastern horizon at dawn. From there, the shower will only be visible during the last hour before dawn, at a lower rate, when skies are still perfectly dark.
Meteor velocity: The Eta Aquariids are among the swiftest of all major annual meteor showers, surpassed only by the Leonids. They enter Earth’s atmosphere at a breathtaking 65.7 km/s.
Chances of meteor trains and fireballs: The swift Eta Aquariid meteors often leave behind persistent trains that typically last for a couple of seconds. In an ideal year, as many as two out of three Eta Aquariids produce persistent trains, but typically it is around 40%. However, the shower produces relatively few fireballs.
Parent of the Eta Aquariid meteor shower
The famous Comet Halley, officially designated as 1P/Halley, is the parent body of the Eta Aquariid meteor shower. It is a short-period comet that orbits the sun once every 76 years on average. The period varies from 74 to 79 years due to the gravitational effects of the planets.
Comet Halley was last seen in our skies in 1986 during its perihelion passage. It will return to the inner solar system in 2061 after completing its 76-year journey around the sun. Each time the comet returns to the inner solar system, its nucleus sheds a layer of ice and rock into its orbit.
Comet Halley moves in a retrograde orbit around the sun. That means it orbits around the sun in the opposite direction to Earth and the other planets. As a result, the debris from Halley’s Comet encounters Earth twice a year.
When the debris stream comes from below Earth’s orbit and encounters Earth at the ascending node, it produces the Orionids in late October, which favor observers in the Northern Hemisphere.
Six months later, when the debris stream comes from above Earth’s orbit after swinging around the sun and encounters Earth at the descending node, it produces the Eta Aquariids in early May, which favor observers in the Southern Hemisphere.
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On my way to Bloomington, IL last night (May 3, 2026), around ten at night, I saw a meteor explode, my first one. I searched for mentions of it, but didn’t find any. My car was pointed somewhere between due west and northwest when I saw it. Didn’t think to look at the compass in my mirror, but the road runs more or less northwest to southeast, and is mostly west near Bloomington. I notice most meteors that get color mentioned tend to be green from nickel. This one looked golden to me. It appeared to break into four large pieces and some smaller ones…but it was only visible for a second. If I’d been looking in any other direction, I’d have missed it entirely.