List of meteor showers
Named meteor showers recur at approximately the same dates each year. They appear to radiate from a certain point in the sky, known as the radiant, and vary in the speed, frequency and brightness of the meteors. As of January 2024, there are 110 established meteor showers.[1]
Table of meteor showers
Dates are given for 2025.[2][3] The dates will vary from year to year due to the leap year cycle. This list includes showers with radiants in both the northern and southern hemispheres. There is some overlap, but generally showers whose radiants have positive declinations are best seen from the northern hemisphere, and those with negative declinations are best observed from the southern hemisphere.
| Name | Dates (as of 2025) |
Peak (as of 2025) |
Solar longitude (λ☉°) |
RA (hours) |
Dec (degrees) |
Ventry (km/s) |
ZHR | Rating | Parent body[4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antihelion Source | 10 Dec – 20 Sep | multiple | varies | varies | 30 | 4 | medium | N/A (various comets) | |
| Quadrantids | 28 Dec – 12 Jan | 3 Jan | 283.15 | 15.3 | +49 | 41 | 80 | bright | (196256) 2003 EH1 ? |
| Gamma Ursae Minorids | 10 Jan – 22 Jan | 18 Jan | 298 | 15.2 | +67 | 31 | 3 | medium | undiscovered (short period) |
| Alpha Centaurids | 31 Jan – 20 Feb | 8 Feb | 319.4 | 14.1 | −58 | 58 | 6 | bright | undiscovered |
| Lyrids | 14 Apr – 30 Apr | 22 Apr | 32.32 | 18.1 | +34 | 49 | 18 | bright | C/1861 G1 (Thatcher) |
| Pi Puppids | 15 Apr – 28 Apr | 23 Apr | 33.5 | 7.3 | −45 | 18 | variable | bright | 26P/Grigg–Skjellerup |
| Eta Aquariids | 19 Apr – 28 May | 6 May | 45.5 | 22.5 | −1 | 66 | 50 | bright | 1P/Halley |
| Eta Lyrids | 3 May – 14 May | 10 May | 50.0 | 19.4 | +43 | 43 | 3 | medium | C/1983 H1 (IRAS-Araki-Alcock) |
| Daytime Arietids | 14 May – 24 Jun | 7 Jun | 76.7 | 2.9 | +24 | 38 | 30 | medium | 1566 Icarus ? |
| June Bootids | 22 Jun – 2 Jul | 27 Jun | 95.7 | 14.9 | +48 | 18 | variable | bright | 7P/Pons-Winnecke |
| July Pegasids | 4 Jul – 14 Jul | 10 Jul | 108.0 | 23.1 | +11 | 63 | 3 | medium | C/1979 Y1 (Bradfield) |
| July Gamma Draconids | 25 Jul – 31 Jul | 28 Jul | 125.13 | 18.7 | +51 | 27 | 5 | medium | |
| Southern Delta Aquariids | 12 Jul – 23 Aug | 31 Jul | 128 | 22.7 | −16 | 41 | 25 | bright | P/2008 Y12 (SOHO) |
| Alpha Capricornids | 3 Jul – 15 Aug | 31 Jul | 128 | 20.5 | −10 | 23 | 5 | bright | 169P/NEAT |
| Eta Eridanids | 31 Jul – 19 Aug | 7 Aug | 135.0 | 2.7 | −11 | 64 | 3 | medium | C/1852 K1 (Chacornac) |
| Perseids | 17 Jul – 24 Aug | 12 Aug | 140.0 | 3.2 | +58 | 59 | 100 | bright | 109P/Swift-Tuttle |
| Kappa Cygnids | 3 Aug – 28 Aug | 16 Aug | 144 | 19.1 | +59 | 23 | 3 | medium | undiscovered (possibly related to 2002 GJ8) |
| Aurigids | 28 Aug – 5 Sep | 1 Sep | 158.6 | 6.1 | +39 | 66 | 6 | bright | C/1911 N1 (Kiess) |
| September Epsilon Perseids | 5 Sep – 21 Sep | 9 Sep | 166.7 | 3.2 | +40 | 64 | 8 | medium | undiscovered (moderate period) |
| Daytime Sextantids | 9 Sep – 9 Oct | 27 Sep | 184.3 | 10.4 | −2 | 32 | 5 | bright | (155140) 2005 UD |
| October Camelopardalids | 5 Oct – 6 Oct | 5 Oct | 192.58 | 10.9 | +79 | 47 | 5 | bright | undiscovered (long period) |
| October Draconids | 6 Oct – 10 Oct | 8 Oct | 195.4 | 17.5 | +54 | 20 | 5 | medium | 21P/Giacobini-Zinner |
| Delta Aurigids | 10 Oct – 18 Oct | 11 Oct | 198 | 5.6 | +44 | 64 | 2 | medium | 21P/Giacobini-Zinner |
| Epsilon Geminids | 14 Oct – 27 Oct | 18 Oct | 205 | 6.8 | +27 | 70 | 3 | medium | C/1964 N1 (Ikeya) |
| Orionids | 2 Oct – 7 Nov | 21 Oct | 208 | 6.3 | +16 | 66 | 20 | bright | 1P/Halley |
| Leonis Minorids | 19 Oct – 27 Oct | 24 Oct | 211 | 10.8 | +37 | 62 | 2 | medium | C/1739 K1 |
| Southern Taurids | 20 Sep – 20 Nov | 5 Nov | 223 | 3.5 | +15 | 27 | 7 | bright | 2P/Encke |
| Northern Taurids | 20 Oct – 10 Dec | 12 Nov | 230 | 3.9 | +22 | 29 | 5 | bright | 2004 TG10 |
| Leonids | 6 Nov – 30 Nov | 17 Nov | 235.27 | 10.1 | +22 | 71 | 10 | bright | 55P/Tempel–Tuttle |
| Alpha Monocerotids | 15 Nov – 25 Nov | 21 Nov | 239.32 | 7.8 | +1 | 65 | variable | bright | undiscovered (long period) |
| November Orionids | 13 Nov – 6 Dec | 28 Nov | 246 | 6.1 | +16 | 44 | 3 | medium | undiscovered (moderate period, probably disintegrated) |
| Phoenicids | 1 Dec – 5 Dec | 1 Dec | 249.5 | 0.5 | −27 | 15 | variable | medium | 289P/Blanpain |
| Puppid-Velids | 1 Dec – 15 Dec | multiple | 255 | 8.2 | −45 | 44 | 10 | medium | undiscovered |
| Monocerotids | 5 Dec – 20 Dec | 9 Dec | 257 | 6.7 | +8 | 41 | 3 | medium | C/1917 F1 (Mellish) |
| Sigma Hydrids | 3 Dec – 20 Dec | 9 Dec | 257 | 8.3 | +2 | 58 | 7 | medium | possibly C/2023 P1 (Nishimura)[5] |
| Geminids | 4 Dec – 20 Dec | 14 Dec | 262.2 | 7.5 | +33 | 35 | 150 | medium | 3200 Phaethon |
| Comae Berenicids | 5 Dec – 4 Feb | 16 Dec | 264 | 10.5 | +30 | 64 | 3 | medium | undiscovered (moderate period) |
| Ursids | 17 Dec – 26 Dec | 22 Dec | 270.7 | 14.5 | +76 | 33 | 10 | medium | 8P/Tuttle |
Table of provisionally named meteor showers
This is a list of provisional names proposed by authors for showers that have only received a designation by the IAU Meteor Data Center.
| Designation | Provisional name | Provisional code | Provisional number | Sol (degrees) |
RA (degrees) |
Dec (degrees) |
Vg (km/s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M2022-Q2 | Febr. omicron-Andromedids | FMA | 1212 | 113.7 | 342.4 | +44.0 | 53.3 |
| M2023-D1 | Jan. alpha-Bootids | JAB | 1213 | 282.6 | 218.8 | +28.2 | 58.9 |
| M2023-D2 | theta-Dracondis | TDR | 1214 | 296.3 | 235.2 | +60.7 | 32.8 |
| M2023-F1 | Aug. nu-Ursae Majorids | ANU | 1215 | 239.2 | 155.8 | +59.7 | 55.0 |
| M2023-F2 | chi Delphinids | CHD | 1216 | 67.3 | 311.8 | +9.1 | 63.3 |
| M2023-F3 | xi Serpentids | XIS | 1217 | 22.1 | 266.3 | -15.9 | 65.9 |
| M2023-F4 | Sep. beta Ursae-Majorids | SBU | 1218 | 277.0 | 164.3 | +54.0 | 48.0 |
| M2023-F5 | delta-Leonids | DEO | 1219 | 266.1 | 164.3 | +20.5 | 68.0 |
| M2023-K1 | 51-Sagittids | FSG | 1220 | 54.54 | 300.3 | +17.8 | 59.7 |
| M2023-O1 | nu-Herculids | NUH | 1221 | 25.8 | 270.5 | +30.7 | 48.9 |
| M2023-V1 | lambda-Sculptorids | LSC | 1222 | 160.0 | 7.1 | -38.8 | 10.0 |
| M2024-H1 | iota-Herculids | IHE | 1223 | 37.8 | 261.1 | +47.3 | 35.6 |
| M2024-N1 | psi-Fornacids | PFO | 1224 | 102.88 | 44.26 | -38.21 | 51.6 |
| M2024-P1 | nu-Capricornids | NUC | 1225 | 139.05 | 306.65 | -11.38 | 18.3 |
| M2024-S1 | zeta-Ursae Minorids | ZUM | 1226 | 181.90 | 238.27 | +77.26 | 32.0 |
| M2024-U1 | theta-Lyrids | THL | 1227 | 213.55 | 288.87 | +37.01 | 13.1 |
| M2024-Y1 | September psi-Cassiopeiids | SPC | 1228 | 162.10 | 20.6 | +73.5 | 46.4 |
See also
Sources
This list of meteor streams and peak activity times is based on data from the International Meteor Organization while most of the parent body associations are from Gary W. Kronk book, Meteor Showers: A Descriptive Catalog, Enslow Publishers, New Jersey, ISBN 0-89490-071-4, and from Peter Jenniskens's book, "Altas of Earth's Meteor Showers", Elsevier, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, ISBN 978-0-443-23577-1.
References
- ^ Meteor Data Centre, IAU
- ^ "2025 Meteor Shower Calendar" (PDF). International Meteor Organization.
- ^ "2026 Meteor Shower List". American Meteor Society.
- ^ "Meteor Streams". NASA.
- ^ "CBET 5290 : COMET C/2023 P1 (NISHIMURA)". Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams. 2023-08-29. Retrieved 2023-08-29.
Further reading
- Gary W. Kronk (2014). Meteor showers: an annotated catalog. The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series (2nd ed.). Springer. Bibcode:2014mesh.book.....K. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-7897-3. ISBN 978-1461478966.
- "2021 Meteor Shower Calendar" (PDF). International Meteor Organization.
- "2020 Meteor Shower Calendar" (PDF). International Meteor Organization.
- "2019 Meteor Shower Calendar" (PDF). International Meteor Organization.