Leonid meteor shower to peak this weekend: Best times and how to watch
The weekend will draw to a close with the Leonids, one of the final meteor showers of the year and one that has a rich history of memorable outbursts.
This fiery streak was caught on camera soaring across the morning sky over Live Oak, Florida, on Nov. 8. Local news reported this was the Chinese Chang Zheng rocket re-entering Earth’s atmosphere.
The Leonid meteor shower is one of the most famous meteor showers in recent history, and it will reach its peak over the weekend. The annual event is often comparable to many other meteor showers throughout the year, but occasionally, it erupts into a full-blown meteor storm.
How to view the Leonid meteor shower 2025
Astronomers are expecting a typical year for the Leonids, with around 10 to 15 shooting stars per hour from Sunday night into Monday morning. It should be a better show than in 2024, when a nearly full moon washed out all but a few meteors on peak night.
A meteor streaks across the night sky. (Getty Images/m-gucci)
Some meteors may start to appear early on Sunday night, but the best viewing will be after 3 a.m., local time, Monday, when the shower's radiant point climbs high in the sky.
Meteors could flash in any area of the sky, but they will appear to originate from the direction of the constellation Leo the Lion, the inspiration behind the shower's name.
Meteor showers are best viewed in areas away from light pollution from cities, towns and highways. Experts also recommend letting your eyes adjust to the darkness, which can take 15 to 30 minutes.
Rich history of Leonid meteor storms
While a typical showing is expected this year, the Leonids have become famous for outbursts with thousands of meteors per hour.
"The Leonids are best known for producing meteor storms in the years of 1833, 1866, 1966, 1999, 2001 and 2002," the American Meteor Society (AMS) explained on its website.
Such onslaughts of meteors occur when the Earth passes through a dense trail of debris from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. "Unfortunately, it appears that the Earth will not encounter any dense clouds of debris until 2099," the AMS added.
An illustration depicting the 1833 Leonid meteor storm. (Edmund Weiß)
After the Leonids, the next major meteor shower on the calendar is the Geminids, one of the top meteor showers of the year. Its peak on Dec. 13-14 may offer stargazers with more than 100 shooting stars per hour.
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