Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
Tropical trouble could stir near Southeast beaches around 4th of July. Get details Chevron right
Severe storms, flash flooding to bring July Fourth holiday travel hassles. Get details Chevron right

Columbus, OH

72°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

72°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Travel

The top 10 places to see meteor showers in the US

By Staff, AccuWeather

Copied

The night of July 29-30 was the peak of the Southern Delta Aquarid and Alpha Capricornid meteor showers. Peak showers had a combined rate of 25 meteors per hour. This night sky timelapse featuring some meteors was shot in Graceville, Minnesota in the early morning of July 30.

Perhaps the most astounding natural event one can experience is a meteor shower. This light show on earth gives people a glimpse of the vastness of space. In many ways, it incentivizes people to be more in tune with their local forecast and treat the earth better in other ways. Needless to say, it's an experience that should be on everyone's bucket list. However, there is one major hurdle that prevents many people from ever experiencing a meteor shower — light pollution. 

Light pollution is when home and city lights cast an invisible shadow on the natural light of space. Since most people live in cities where light pollution is the worst, they can hardly ever experience a meteor shower from their own homes. For this reason, some cities are starting to make the switch towards downward-facing artificial lights as a way to reveal the natural lights of space. While that is having some positive impact, the reality is that those efforts are not nearly as strong as visiting an already natural and unpolluted environment. With this in mind, let's go over ten of the best places to see the meteor showers in the US.

Big Bend National Park, Texas

Quite obviously, the world's best places to see meteor showers are going to be untouched environments such as national parks. Speaking of which, Big Bend National Park in Texas gives people a look at thousands of stars on any given night. Meteor showers here can be seen just as well.

Joshua Tree National Park, California

Given the many densely populated cities in California, it's hard to imagine that this state would be a good candidate to see meteor showers. However, thanks to the size of California, places like Joshua Tree National Park are hot spots for them. The winter months are known for putting up quite the light show here.

shooting stars

Photo by Will Li

Will Li

Death Valley, California/Nevada

Don't let its name scare you. With locations in both California and Nevada, Death Valley is another hot spot for meteor showers and stargazing. The reason it's a great location for meteor showers is because it has naturally dark skies. It's dark skies illuminate the stars more than in other places.

Finger Lakes, New York

Much like California, New York can be misinterpreted as an even worse candidate for seeing meteor showers because of its densely populated areas. However, even New York has the beauty of the Finger Lakes for people to enjoy. Because Finger lakes are located away from the bright lights of the city, its darker environments provide an incredible view of the night's sky.

Related:

The Best Stargazing Sites in the US
8 Places to See Stalagmites and Stalactites in the US
When is the best time of year to see the Northern Lights?
Top Places To Visit with a View Above the Clouds
Important Tips for Winter Camping

Tucson, Arizona

Tucson, Arizona, is perhaps the most exciting place for seeing a meteor shower. The leading quality that gives it an excellent reputation for this natural phenomenon is its tall hills and mountains. These mountains serve the purpose of elevating the platform in which you can look at the sky.

Denali National Park, Alaska

Alaska is a place that many would expect would be on this list. Its natural beauty can be found virtually everywhere. That said, Denali National Park in Alaska is known for hosting some of the most astounding meteor showers in the nation. This place has the benefit of no artificial lights and mountains to obstruct the view.

meteor shower in the US

Photo by Robson Hatsukami Morgan

Robson Hatsukami Morgan

Brockway Mountain, Michigan

If you are looking to see more than a couple of large meteor showers in one experience, Brockway Mountain, Michigan, is the place to go. The way this place is situated, people can experience an additional 50 or so meteors passing by per hour.

Big Pine Key, Florida

If Alaska is an obvious candidate for seeing meteor showers, Florida would be the opposite. Nonetheless, Big Pine Key in Florida has an annual winter party for stargazing. What makes meteor showers so prominent here is the location is far away from the city and light pollution.

White Sands, New Mexico

White Sands in New Mexico is an excellent spot for seeing meteor showers for some of the main reasons that Death Valley is. While it is not as flat as Death Valley, White Sands is flat enough and dark enough to illuminate the stars above.

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Last but not least, the entire state of Utah is somewhat known for having secluded areas that are well-kept. That said, Canyonlands National Park in Utah takes these qualities and magnifies them tenfold. This entire park casts a shadow on earth below and highlights the night's sky from virtually anywhere in the park.

Report a Typo

Weather News

Recreation

Boulders narrowly miss swimmers at popular Utah waterfall

Jun. 27, 2025
Weather Forecasts

July 4 Forecast: Thunderstorms to focus over Upper Midwest and Florida

Jul. 1, 2025
Weather News

Girl, 8, rescued after 7 hours in flooded sewer in China

Jun. 27, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Severe Weather

Severe storms, flash flooding to bring July 4 holiday travel hassles

6 hours ago

Weather News

Storm chaser stages whirlwind proposal with real tornado

8 hours ago

Weather News

Tropical trouble could stir near Southeast beaches around 4th of July

6 hours ago

Astronomy

July offers rare meteor shower combo, stunning views of the Milky Way

5 days ago

Weather News

Flights cancelled as Atlanta airport recovers from severe weather

2 days ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

10 hours ago

Recreation

Two people rescued after going overboard on Disney cruise ship

11 hours ago

Weather News

Fossil reveals ‘Last of Us’-type fungus likely lived with dinosaurs

6 days ago

Health

'Inverse' vaccines may hold key to challenge autoimmune diseases

1 day ago

Weather News

World’s most liveable city for 2025 revealed

1 week ago

AccuWeather Travel The top 10 places to see meteor showers in the US
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...