Geminids 2026: Peak Time, Moon Phase and Best Viewing Hours
The Geminids are the strongest regular meteor shower of the year, and in 2026 the Moon stays out of the way: only a thin crescent that sets in the evening.
Peak (IMO)
Mon, 14 Dec 2026, 14:00 UTCMon, 14 Dec 2026, 22:00 (Taipei, UTC+8) · Mon, 14 Dec 2026, 09:00 (New York, UTC−5)
Recent maxima fell between
Sun, 13 Dec 2026, 21:00 – Mon, 14 Dec 2026, 18:00 UTC
Active
4 Dec 2026 – 20 Dec 2026
ZHR at peak
150
Radiant
RA 07h 28m, Dec +33° (in Gemini, near Castor)
Speed
35 km/s (slow to medium)
Population index r
2.6 (rich in bright meteors)
Moon at the peak
Waxing crescent, 25% lit
Data refreshed · Sources: IMO · astronomy-engine
This page is rebuilt from that data; anything whose time has passed drops out of the upcoming lists automatically.
What to expect this year
The International Meteor Organization (IMO) calls the Geminids the best and most reliable of the major annual showers. Its 2026 calendar puts the maximum on 14 December centred at 14h UT, at solar longitude 262.2°, with a zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) of about 150. The shower is known for bright meteors and fireballs.
The maximum is broad. IMO notes that ZHRs of 100 and more usually last for roughly 10 to 12 hours, and that the best-observed maxima of the past two decades all fell between 13 December 21h and 14 December 18h UT in 2026 terms. Brighter Geminids tend to become more common toward the end of the main maximum, so the hours after the peak are worth watching too.
Moonlight is not a problem this year. At the peak the Moon is a waxing crescent only about a quarter lit, and it sets in the evening in every city below, well before the radiant climbs high.
Best viewing hours by city
For each city we chose whichever of the two nights around the peak brings the radiant highest closest to the peak time. “Dark” means the Sun is more than 18° below the horizon. The window starts when the Moon has set and the radiant is at least 30° high (10° for Sydney, where it never gets higher than about 23°), and ends at dawn.
Los Angeles (UTC−8)
Night of: 13–14 Dec 2026
Dark sky
18:14 – 05:21
Moonset
21:00
Best window
20:59 – 05:19
Radiant highest
01:49 · 89°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~150 per hour
New York (UTC−5)
Night of: 13–14 Dec 2026
Dark sky
18:07 – 05:33
Moonset
20:42
Best window
20:47 – 05:32
Radiant highest
01:52 · 82°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~149 per hour
London (UTC+0)
Night of: 13–14 Dec 2026
Dark sky
17:55 – 05:54
Moonset
20:02
Best window
20:35 – 05:50
Radiant highest
01:55 · 71°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~142 per hour
Mumbai (UTC+5:30)
Night of: 14–15 Dec 2026
Dark sky
19:21 – 05:45
Moonset
22:31
Best window
22:31 – 05:41
Radiant highest
02:31 · 76°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~146 per hour
Taipei (UTC+8)
Night of: 14–15 Dec 2026
Dark sky
18:27 – 05:09
Moonset
21:32
Best window
21:32 – 05:07
Radiant highest
01:47 · 82°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~149 per hour
Sydney (UTC+11)
Night of: 14–15 Dec 2026
Dark sky
21:45 – 03:54
Moonset
23:38
Best window
23:45 – 03:50
Radiant highest
02:50 · 23°
Ideal-sky rate
up to ~59 per hour
The ideal-sky rate is ZHR × sin(radiant altitude) at the radiant’s highest point: what one observer could see with a perfectly dark, clear sky (stars to magnitude +6.5). From a suburb you may see a third of that or less; from a city centre, a handful.
North and south of the equator
Well north of the equator the Geminid radiant rises around sunset, so meteors start in the evening, and it culminates near 2 a.m. local time. Mid-northern latitudes such as New York, London and Taipei see it climb to 70–80° or more.
South of the equator the radiant only appears around local midnight and stays low. From Sydney it peaks at about 23° above the northern horizon, which cuts the visible rate to less than half of what a northern observer would see under the same sky.
How these times were worked out
Peak time, ZHR, radiant position and speed are copied from the IMO 2026 Meteor Shower Calendar. Sunset twilight, dawn, moonset and the height of the radiant were computed for each city with astronomy-engine using the radiant position IMO gives for the maximum. Times are rounded to five minutes and ignore local hills, buildings and weather.
For the Americas the night of 13–14 December is best, because the peak (14:00 UTC on 14 December) falls in the early morning there. For Asia and Australia the night of 14–15 December is closer to the peak. In Europe both nights are about equally good because the maximum is broad.
Will the Moon spoil the 2026 Geminids?
No. At the peak the Moon is a waxing crescent about 25% lit and it sets in the evening, before the radiant is high. It is one of the most favourable Geminid returns for moonlight.
Do I need to look toward Gemini?
No. Geminids can appear anywhere in the sky; the radiant only tells you where their paths point back to. Look about 45° up, in whichever direction has the darkest sky and the clearest view.