Peaks around May 6 each year · up to ~50/hr at its best · very fast (66 km/s) · best from the southern hemisphere and the tropics.
The Eta Aquariids are one of the finest meteor showers for the southern hemisphere and tropics, delivering swift, long-tailed meteors from the debris of the most famous comet in history. They peak around May 6 each year, with an ideal rate of about 50 meteors an hour under a dark sky. Northern observers can still catch them, but the radiant climbs higher and the rates are better the closer you are to the equator or southern latitudes.
When to watch
The shower is active from around April 19 to May 28 each year, building to a peak around May 6. This is strictly a before-dawn shower — the radiant in Aquarius rises in the east only a few hours before sunrise, so the window between about 2 a.m. and first light is your best opportunity each morning near the peak.
Where to look
The meteors appear to stream from the constellation Aquarius in the eastern sky before dawn, but they flash across the whole sky. Don't stare at the radiant — face a wide, dark stretch of sky a good distance away from it and let the meteors come to you.
What makes it special
The Eta Aquariids are debris shed by comet Halley, Earth's most celebrated periodic visitor. At 66 km/s they are among the fastest meteors of the year, which means bright, sharp streaks and gloriously long glowing trains that can linger for a second or two after the meteor has gone. The ~50-per-hour figure is the ideal zenithal rate under perfect dark skies with the radiant overhead — real counts, especially from northern latitudes, will be lower.
How to watch
Leave any telescope or binoculars at home — you want the whole sky, not a keyhole. Find the darkest spot you can reach, give your eyes at least 20 minutes to fully dark-adapt, and settle in with a reclining chair or blanket facing east. The radiant is low even at its best from the northern hemisphere, so southern and tropical observers have a real advantage here.
Frequently asked
When do the Eta Aquariids peak?
Around May 6 every year, with the active window running from about April 19 to May 28. The nights closest to the 6th, in the hours before dawn, are the best time to watch.
How many Eta Aquariids will I actually see?
The ideal zenithal rate is about 50 meteors an hour — under a perfectly dark sky with the radiant directly overhead. From the southern hemisphere or tropics at a dark site you might approach that. From mid-northern latitudes, where the radiant stays low, expect more like 10 to 20 an hour at best.
What causes the Eta Aquariids?
They're tiny particles shed over millennia by comet Halley. Every May, Earth crosses through that debris stream, and the grains — hitting the atmosphere at 66 km/s — burn up as the fast, train-leaving meteors that appear to radiate from the constellation Aquarius.
Other meteor showers
Quadrantids · Lyrids · Southern Delta Aquariids · Perseids · Orionids · Leonids · Geminids · Ursids