Meteor showers in 2027: UK dates and viewing guide

Last updated 4 November 2026

The best meteor showers for UK viewers in 2027 are the Quadrantids, peaking early on 4 January with almost no moonlight; the Perseids, peaking on 13 August with a bright Moon in the evening; and the Ursids on 23 December, free of moonlight. The Geminids, usually the year's richest shower, peak on 14 December right beside full Moon, so 2027 is a poor year for them.

The 2027 calendar

Peak dates and rates are from the International Meteor Organization's Meteor Shower Calendar 2027, with times converted to UK clock time (GMT in winter, BST from 28 March to 31 October 2027). Moon phases are from the US Naval Observatory.

What ZHR means

The zenithal hourly rate is the number of meteors one observer would see in an hour under perfect conditions: a completely dark sky showing stars down to magnitude 6.5, with the shower's radiant directly overhead. Real counts are almost always lower, often a half or a quarter of the ZHR or less, especially from towns, with the radiant low, or with the Moon up. Use it to compare showers, not as a promise.

The ones worth staying up for

Quadrantids, 3–4 January. The year's first big shower, and one of 2027's best placed. The peak is due at about 03:25 GMT on 4 January with a thin crescent Moon a few days before new, so the sky will be dark. The radiant, in northern Boötes near the Plough's handle, is well up in the north-east before dawn. The peak is short, usually a few hours, so the early hours of 4 January are the time to be out. Rates vary a lot from year to year, and the IMO notes that models suggest the stream is shifted slightly towards the Sun in 2027, which might bring enhanced activity.

Perseids, 12–13 and 13–14 August. The UK's favourite: warm nights, fast bright meteors and a reliable ZHR above 100. The 2027 peak is expected on 13 August between about 09:00 and 11:00 BST, in daylight, so watch the nights either side. The IMO says the Moon will be midway between first quarter and full, leaving a short moon-free part of the night, and notes uncertain model predictions of extra activity from older dust trails on the night of 12–13 August. The radiant in Perseus is reasonably high from 10–11pm and climbs all night, so the hours before dawn are best.

Leonids, 17–20 November. The regular peak is due at about 06:00 GMT on 18 November, handily in the UK's pre-dawn dark. The IMO's calendar lists several model predictions of possible extra activity between 17 and 20 November, including rates of 40 to 50 an hour around 22:00 GMT on 17 November and around 04:20 GMT on 20 November. They are uncertain, and a waning gibbous Moon will brighten the sky, but the Leonids are worth watching this year.

Ursids, 22–23 December. A small shower, but the peak at about 04:00 GMT on 23 December is moon-free, and the radiant near the Little Bear is high in the UK sky all night.

Geminids: a bad year. Usually the year's strongest shower, but in 2027 the full Moon falls on 13 December and sits near the radiant on the peak night of 13–14 December, flooding the sky with light. Only the brightest meteors will show. Our full Moon dates for 2027 show why.

How to watch from the UK

1. Check the cloud. It is the main enemy in Britain. Use the Met Office cloud forecast and go out on the clearest night near the peak, not only the peak night itself.
2. Get away from lights. Fainter meteors vanish in town skyglow. A dark corner of the garden helps, and a proper dark site is far better; see the best stargazing spots in the UK.
3. Lie back. A reclining chair or a mat is ideal. You don't need to stare at the radiant: meteors appear all over the sky, and those about 40 to 60 degrees from it often leave the longest trails.
4. Give it time. Allow 20 to 30 minutes for your eyes to adapt, and plan to watch for at least an hour. Meteors often come in bursts, with quiet gaps between.
5. Leave the telescope indoors. Binoculars and telescopes show too little sky. Your eyes are the right instrument.
6. Go after midnight. For most showers, rates rise after midnight as your side of the Earth turns to face into the dust stream.

What causes meteor showers?

Comets shed dust as they travel round the Sun. When the Earth passes through one of these dust streams each year, the particles hit our atmosphere at tens of kilometres a second and burn up as streaks of light. Because they all travel in parallel, perspective makes them seem to fan out from one point, the radiant, and each shower is named after the constellation its radiant lies in. The Perseids come from Comet Swift-Tuttle, the Leonids from Comet Tempel-Tuttle, and both the Eta Aquariids and the Orionids from Halley's Comet. The Royal Observatory Greenwich has a helpful meteor shower guide.

Common questions