The Ursids meteor shower
- Next peak
- December 22, 2026, 21:54 UTC
- Active
- about Dec 17 to Dec 26
- ZHR (ideal rate)
- 10 (occasional outbursts)
- Moon at the 2026 peak
- 98% lit, badly moonlit
- Radiant
- Ursa Minor
- Speed
- 33 km/s
- Parent body
- comet 8P/Tuttle
- Best from
- northern latitudes
The Ursids close the meteor year quietly, a minor stream from comet 8P/Tuttle emerging near the bowl of the Little Dipper in the week before Christmas. Occasional outbursts, with hints as recently as 2020, keep dedicated observers checking.
Peak times and moonlight, 2026-2028
Peaks below are computed from the shower's solar longitude, the same way the professional calendars do it, not read off a fixed date. Moonlight makes or breaks a meteor year, so each peak carries its Moon verdict.
| Year | Peak (UTC) | Moon |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | December 22, 2026, 21:54 UTC | Moon 98% lit, badly moonlit |
| 2027 | December 23, 2027, 04:05 UTC | Moon 21% lit, dark skies |
| 2028 | December 22, 2028, 10:02 UTC | Moon 36% lit, some moonlight |
Your best viewing window
Enter a location (or use your device's) and we compute the real watch window for the coming peak night: sky fully dark, Moon out of the way, radiant usefully high. All in your browser; coordinates never leave your device.
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Watching the Ursids
The radiant is circumpolar from mid-northern latitudes, so the shower runs all night; the hours before dawn are still the best. Strictly a northern-hemisphere event.
How to watch any meteor shower
No instrument beats your own eyes: binoculars and telescopes see too little sky. Get away from direct lights, lie back so you can watch a wide stretch of sky about halfway up, and give your eyes a full 20 minutes to adapt (no phone screens; red light if you need it). Meteors appear all over the sky, not just at the radiant, so face whichever direction is darkest for you.
What the ZHR really promises
Every shower is advertised by its ZHR, the zenithal hourly rate, and every year that number disappoints people who take it literally. The ZHR is a standardized laboratory figure: the rate one experienced observer would count under a perfectly dark sky (limiting magnitude 6.5) with the radiant directly overhead. Real skies are brighter, real radiants sit lower, and real eyes miss meteors.
A workable rule: from a genuinely dark rural sky with the radiant high, expect to see about half the ZHR. From a typical suburb, a quarter or less. That said, a single brilliant fireball can outweigh an hour of counting, and the showers on this page all earn their reputations in a dark sky.
Frequently asked questions
When do the Ursids peak in 2026?
The computed peak comes on December 22, 2026 at 21:54 UTC, with the shower active from about Dec 17 to Dec 26. Meteor peaks are broad enough that the nights on either side are usually worth watching too.
How many meteors will I actually see?
The headline ZHR of 10 (occasional outbursts) is a standardized ideal, not a forecast. Under a truly dark sky with the radiant high, expect roughly half that; from a bright suburb, a quarter or less. Moonlight matters as much as anything: in 2026 the Moon is 98% lit at the peak (badly moonlit).
Where should I look to see the Ursids?
Everywhere: meteors streak across the whole sky. The radiant, the point their paths trace back to, lies in Ursa Minor, but staring at it shows you the shortest trails. Watch a wide area of dark sky about halfway up, in whatever direction is darkest from your site.
What causes the Ursids?
Debris from comet 8P/Tuttle. Each December, Earth crosses the stream of particles this body has shed along its orbit; they hit the atmosphere at 33 kilometers per second and burn up as the streaks we see.
Keep exploring: all 13 major showers ranked for the year ahead, how meteor showers work from first principles, and the Sky Map, which draws every active radiant on tonight's sky.