METEOR ALERT!! THE FIRST MAJOR METEOR SHOWER OF THE YEAR - THE QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER PEAKS THIS SATURDAY NIGHT JANUARY 3rd – 4TH 2026!!! - EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER!!! 💖🌒🌠☄️✨
A QUICK SUMMARY OF THE QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER
- Parent Body: Asteroid 2003 EH1 + Comet C/1490 Y1
- Radiant Constellation: Bootes / Quadrans Muralis
- Shower activity between: 27th December – 12th January
- Peak activity: 3rd January
- Peak meteor count: on average up to 120 meteors per hour in perfect conditions!
- Best time/date to observe: night of the 3rd into the early morning of the 4th January
The Quadrantid meteor shower is one of the most prolific meteor showers of the year, second only to the Geminids Meteor shower with the August Perseids following closely behind. The Quadrantid Meteor Shower is active between the 27th of December and the 12th of January, peaking on the evening of the 3rd into the morning of the 4th of January. The Quadrantid shower is the first major meteor shower of the year! This meteor shower can produce up to 120 meteors per hour and is known for its blue, yellow and white meteors that leave fine trains.
UNFORTUNATELY, this year will not be the best to observe the Quadrantid meteor shower due to the peak occurring on the same day as the January full moon. This means the Moon will be creating a lot of natural light pollution, leaving only the brightest Quadrantid meteors visible in the bright moonlit skies.
HOWEVER, the high rate of meteors of the Quadrantid meteor shower combined with the fact that the radiant is well placed for Northern hemisphere observers, you will still be likely to see a fair amount of meteors when not looking near the Moon.
All in all, it’s a fairly good time to try spot meteors and well worth spending an hour or two out stargazing and meteor watching on these beautiful dark nights.
If you would like more detailed information on the Quadrantid meteor shower and meteors in general, including what meteors are, where they come from, what you need to know about to maximise your chances of viewing meteors, plus our personal recommendations and tips for when and where to look, please read on…
THE QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER
The Quadrantid Meteor Shower is so named because the radiant point from which the meteors appear to radiate from is located within the defunct constellation of Quadrans Muralis. This constellation was named by a French astronomer called Jerome Lalanade in 1795 and depicts a quadrant of stars in between the constellations of Bootes the herdsman, Draco the dragon and the tail of Ursa Major (or the well-known asterism known as The Plough or The Big Dipper).
Whilst Quadrans Muralis isn’t listed in the International Astronomical Union list of officially recognised constellations, this well-known meteor shower is still named after it. Today the radiant for the Quadrantids is known to be located in the constellation of Bootes.
This annual winter meteor shower is considered by many as one of the strongest and most reliable meteor showers of the year, known for lighting up dark skies with bright, fairly fast multicoloured meteors that can leave ionised gas trails. At its peak this shower is projected to produce up to 120 meteors an hour under clear, dark skies.
Quadrantid meteors are often blue, white and yellow in colour. These colours are partly caused by the presence of traces of metals like sodium, iron and calcium, the same elements that are used to make fireworks colourful.
The Quadrantids are known for producing “fireballs”, which are exceptionally bright meteors (brighter than Venus) that blaze across the night sky amazing all those that witness them. These fireballs are so bright that they can even be visible in light-polluted areas such as cities.
Quadrantid meteors are typically travelling at a velocity of 22 miles per second, entering the Earth's atmosphere at a speed of roughly 156,000 miles per hour, Wow! 🙀☄️
WHERE DO METEORS COME FROM? / PARENT BODY – ASTEROID 2003 EH1
Most of the major meteor showers originate from comet debris. However, together with the Geminids, the Quadrantids are the only major meteor showers known to not originate from comets.
The meteors from the Quadrantids meteor shower are thought to be produced by dust grains and debris left behind by an asteroid known as 2003 EH1, which was discovered in 2003.
More recent research has also linked the comet C/1490 Y1 to the Quadrantids too, and material from this comet may contribute to the Quadrantid meteor shower.
WHAT CAUSES THE LIGHT FROM METEORS?
As a comet or asteroid travels through space, it leaves a trail of dust and debris behind it. When Earth intersects these trails, we slam into the dust and debris in their wake. The debris then enters the Earth’s atmosphere at incredibly high speed, generating immense amounts of frictional energy that is released in the form of intense heat and light. Meteors tend to vary from the size of a sand grain to about as big as a pea. The bigger the piece of debris, the bigger and brighter the meteor.
When a meteoroid particle strikes the upper atmosphere at high speed, it heats up to around 1,650°C and starts to glow. The meteoroid also compresses and heats the air in front of it, exciting atoms like oxygen which in turn radiate light. Together, the two processes produce the bright, needle-like flashes known as meteors or "shooting stars."
Occasionally, a meteoroid may be large enough to survive its fiery journey through our atmosphere, landing somewhere on Earth. When a meteoroid manages to land on our planet, it becomes known as a meteorite.
METEOR COLOURS ❤️💙💜🧡💛☄️
When meteoroids burn up in our atmosphere, they can sometimes create beautifully colourful trails behind them. The colours that meteors display are partly caused by the presence of traces of elements such as sodium, iron and calcium, the same elements that are used to make fireworks colourful.
These elements become ionised as they travel through Earth’s atmosphere and emit a beautiful range of different coloured meteor trails as their particles burn up in the atmosphere. The colours that are emitted depend on the elements being excited.
Here are the colours associated with different elements found in meteors: 👇
🟠 Orange-yellow — sodium;
🟡 Yellow — iron;
🔵 Blue-green — magnesium;
🟣 Violet — calcium;
🔴 Red — atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen.
The speed at which the meteor enters the Earth’s atmosphere can also affect the colour. The faster a meteor moves, the more intense it’s colour may appear.
FIREBALL METEORS
On rare occasions, when a meteoroid is large enough, it is possible to view extremely bright meteors which are known as “Fireballs”. A meteor is called a fireball when it reaches a magnitude (brightness) equal to or brighter than that of the planet Venus. Venus is about -4 in magnitude, a meteor must be brighter than this to be known as a fireball. These fireballs are so bright that they can easily be seen in heavily light-polluted areas such as cities.
On very rare occasions, it is possible to view meteors that explode and separate into several pieces in the sky. We have been treated to sights of a couple of these at the public stargazing events that we run in Dalby Forest. These explosive meteors are known as “bolides” and can outshine the bright full moon. They are an incredible sight to witness.
WHAT FACTORS TO CONSIDER TO MAKE SURE YOU CAN SEE METEORS
In order to maximise your chances of viewing meteors from a meteor shower it helps to consider a few things.
The main thing you need to consider when looking for meteors from a meteor shower is the date/s when the Earth travels it’s furthest into the trail of debris left by the parent comet or asteroid. Around this period of time there will be a higher number of meteoroids entering the Earth’s atmosphere, this is the peak of the meteor shower.
The next most important thing to consider for many showers is the time that the radiant for the meteor shower will be high in the sky. The higher the radiant is in your visible sky, the higher your chances of viewing meteors will be. However, sometimes the radiant for a shower may not be at its highest point in the sky when the skies are dark.
You must also take the brightness of the skies into account along with the radiant’s location in order to maximise your chances of viewing meteors.
There are also other factors such as the Earth weather, the conditions of your viewing location and the Moon’s position and phase that will affect how easy it is to view meteors and need to be considered.
WHEN IS THE PEAK / THE BEST NIGHT TO WATCH?
The exact time of peak activity for the Quadrantids (when the Earth travels furthest into the trails of asteroid 2003 EH1 and comet C/1490 Y1) will be in the evening of the 3rd of January at around 21:26 GMT.
Although this will be when Earth travels furthest into the material that causes this meteor shower, the radiant for the shower will be fairly low in the sky at this time, and so it may be better to wait until a little later until the radiant has risen higher in the sky.
There are other factors to take into account (please see below) that will affect the amount of visible meteors, which may mean that the best time for viewing this year’s Quadrantids will be later in the night or early in the morning of the 4th.
WHERE TO LOOK / THE RADIANT
To help you know where is best to look for meteors it helps to understand a little about meteor shower radiants.
Meteors from a specific meteor shower will appear to originate from a particular area of the sky which is known as the “radiant”.
The radiant for the Quadrantid meteor shower can be located in the defunct constellation of Quadrans Muralis which is located within the boundaries of the constellation Bootes.
The constellation of Bootes can be found in between the constellations Ursa Major, Virgo and Hercules.
The exact location of the Quadrantid radiant is roughly half way between the asterism known as the Plough and the constellation of Hercules
You don’t really need to know exactly where the meteors radiate from because meteors can appear anywhere in the sky. However, knowing where the radiant is may help you increase your chances of viewing meteors if you follow this top tip:
Top Tip! - If you can locate the radiant, try looking at a dark part of the sky around 45 degrees away from the radiant to maximise your chances of viewing meteors. This area of the sky tends to be the easiest area to spot meteors. Meteors seen closer to the radiant will appear shorter / leave shorter trails compared to others further away from the radiant.
Cool Fact! - You can tell if a meteor belongs to a specific shower by tracing a line backwards from the direction it appeared to travel in across the sky. If this line leads you close to a meteor shower’s radiant location, you can safely bet that meteor belonged to that specific meteor shower.
WHAT TIME TO LOOK / RADIANT CONTINUED
Although it can help knowing the exact location of the radiant, the main thing you need to know about a meteor shower radiant is that it has risen above the horizon. Once the radiant has risen in the sky there will be a higher chance of seeing meteors, and the higher the radiant has risen, the more meteors will be visible.
One good thing about the Quadrantids is that the radiant is circumpolar. This means the radiant is always above the horizon for those in the UK and mid latitudes of the Northern hemisphere.
With many meteor showers (the Moon aside) the best time to head out and watch meteor showers is usually on the peak night between midnight and dawn, when the radiant is (usually) high in the sky and the skies are darkest. Don’t worry if you can’t head out this late, there should still be plenty of meteors about earlier in the night.
On the night of the 3rd of January, the radiant for the Quadrantid meteor shower will begin the night at around 13 degrees high towards the North. Throughout the night, the radiant will circle anti-clockwise around the North celestial pole rising higher in the sky, reaching its highest in the sky at roughly 08:31 GMT. However the skies will be bright at this time and so the early morning hours of the 4th of January will be best radiant-height-wise.
If you head out early in the night, you might also be treated to something called an “Earth grazer” meteor (long, slow, colourful meteors that skim across the edge of our atmosphere).
WHERE TO VIEW FROM / VIEWING LOCATION
The location that you do your stargazing from can make a big difference to the number of stars and in this case shooting stars that are possible to see in the night sky. The less light there is around your viewing location, the more your eyes will adapt to the darkness, the darker the skies will be and the more of the fainter meteors from a shower will be visible.
Ideally for meteor showers and generally enjoying the night sky, you want to find a safe dark location, with clear views of the sky, and as far away from sources of light such as street lights as possible.
Although the bright full Moon will mean that only the brightest meteors will be visible, it will still help not having any bright lights in your line of sight.
DARK ADAPTATION / NIGHT VISION
When out meteor watching, in order to view as many meteors as possible it can help to allow your eyes become adapted to seeing faint objects in the sky.
Try not to look at sources of light such as your mobile phone or the Moon for around 15 minutes or so, this will allow your eyes become dark adapted. After around 15-30 minutes of letting your eyes adapt to the dark, the pupils of your eyes will dilate to their maximum aperture and the receptors in your eyes that are responsible for low light vision will become fully activated. This will allow your eyes to gather more light and more fainter night sky objects will be easier to see.
If you need to use a torch to light your way, we recommend using a torch that emits only red light. Red light has much less of an effect on your night vision compared to white light.
If you want to use your phone, use it on its lowest brightness and you can always cover the screen with a red film to minimise its effect on your night vision. Star map/planetarium apps such as Stellarium often have a night mode that displays only in red light which can also help you keep your night vision.
Another tip to help you see more on nights with a bright moon or a light nearby to your viewing location is to keep the moon or source of light out of sight. If you have a large tree or building nearby to your location, try blocking the moon or any sources of light from your line of sight with the tree/building. This can help stop a bright moon or lights from ruining your dark adapted night vision.
THE MOON / DARK SKIES
Sometimes the glow of the Moon can interfere with a meteor shower and spoil meteor shower views by lighting up the night sky and washing out the fainter meteors. When the Moon is bright it leaves only the brightest of meteors visible.
Unfortunately for this year’s peak night of the Quadrantid meteor shower, the Moon will be full and around all night. This means that the skies will bright due to the natural light pollution of the Moon. However, the high meteor rate combined with the radiant being high means there is still a fair chance of seeing a few bright meteors.
ASTRO DOGS RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW BEST TO SEE THE QUADRANTIDS
Following the advice above will help you maximise your chances of seeing meteors. But if you want our personal recommendations for this year’s Quadrantids:
- Considering the timing of the peak, the radiants location, and the Moon conditions, the best time/date to observe the Quadrantids may be the early morning of the 4th of January as the radiant rises higher and the Moon descends closer to the horizon.
- However, don’t worry if you can’t stay out this late there should still be lots of meteors around earlier in the night.
- Meteors can be seen anywhere in the sky, but you are more likely to see meteors around 45 degrees away from the radiant which is located in the constellation of Bootes.
- Following the above tip, if you can locate the constellations Bootes and Virgo, in between the two brightest stars of these constellations (Arcturus and Spica respectively) may be a good location to focus on.
We hope that these tips will help you catch some shooting stars! 😊
OTHER CELESTIAL TREATS TO LOOK OUT FOR
Although the full Moon will not be helping our chances of viewing meteors, the Moon will be taking part in a special celestial meeting on the same night of the peak of the Quadrantid meteor shower. On the night of the 3rd into the morning of the 4th of January the full Moon will appear close by to the bright planet Jupiter and the bright star Pollux of Gemini.
This celestial gathering will make for a beautiful sight in our night skies and so when you are not focused on viewing meteors, we recommend soaking in this special sight.
WHAT ELSE IS IN THE NIGHT SKY THROUGHOUT JANUARY?
If you would like to know more about the rest of the celestial treats that can be seen in the skies throughout this month, please head to our YouTube channel to watch our Night Sky Guide video for January 2026.
GENERAL STARGAZING/METEOR SHOWER TIPS
• You don’t need a telescope or any special equipment to view meteors, just your eyes and a bit of patience.
• If you do own binoculars or a telescope, you may want to take a closer look at some of the amazing celestial treats that are currently visible in our night skies. Saturn with its majestic ring system, Jupiter with its great weather bands and great red spot, the Pleiades with its faint nebulous glow, and the amazing Andromeda galaxy all are spectacular to view with binoculars or a telescope.
• Find a safe, dark location with clear unobstructed views and with no lights in sight. Even with the bright Moon, the less light around you, the more meteors you will see. However, don’t worry too much if you can’t get somewhere dark, you should still see the brighter meteors.
• Allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness and you will see more meteors. Our eyes require time to adjust to low levels of light. Try not to look at bright lights (such as a phone) for around 15-30 minutes and this will allow you to see many more meteors. If you do require to use a torch, use one which emits red light as this interferes with your night vision much less than white light.
• Be mindful of other stargazers when using a torch, you don’t want to ruin other people’s meteor shower experience!
• You don’t need to know where the radiant for a meteor shower is to be able to view meteors but if you do, it can help. Once you’ve located the radiant in the sky, looking halfway between the horizon and the zenith (directly upwards), and 45 degrees from the radiant will improve your chances of viewing meteors (however, pay attention to the whole sky as they can appear anywhere). The closer to the radiant you look, the shorter the meteors will appear. The further away from the radiant you look, the longer they will appear.
• You can tell if a meteor belongs to a specific shower by tracing a line backwards from the direction it appeared to travel in across the sky. If this line leads you to the radiant’s location, you can tell that meteor belonged to that specific meteor shower.
• You might want to take a blanket to lay on or a chair to recline in, so your neck doesn’t get strained whilst looking up.
• If you head out, wrap up well! It can get quite chilly on a night, and if you are not prepared, you may end up being too cold to stay out and see any meteors. Bring a blanket to cover yourself in and a flask with a warm drink for extra comfort. ❄️🧤🧣
• You may wish to gather some of your friends and family to share this magical occasion too. You could always host a meteor watching party with music and drinks (but no bright lights!).
GOOD LUCK AND CLEAR SKIES
The peak of the Quadrantids always puts on a great show, and even with the full Moon out, we are very much looking forward to this year’s Quadrantids.
We can’t wait to see if we witness some amazing fireballs and we hope you all get to see some too!
As ever, interactions or shares are a great help, and we are eternally grateful for all your support.
Good luck everyone and clear skies!!! 💖
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