Leonid Meteor Shower to Peak November 17
The annual shower peaks with up to 15 meteors per hour, followed by a supermoon full Moon on November 24.
Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Space
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The Leonid meteor shower is set to peak on November 17, producing up to 15 meteors per hour as Earth passes through debris from comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. A full Moon on November 24 will appear as a supermoon, looming larger than usual in the sky.
Why it matters
Meteor showers reveal the trail of debris left by comets as Earth crosses their orbits, offering a visible link to the solar system's dust. Observers worldwide can watch the event, though forecasters project it will be less spectacular than usual this year.
Forecast peak rate of up to 15 meteors per hour is a projection from the shower's known behavior, not a measured count; Leonid meteors travel over 70 kilometers per second, and the November 24 supermoon appears 10 to 14 percent larger than a typical full Moon. The actual meteor count this year remains unknown and is projected to be below the shower's usual intensity.
The details
The Leonid shower results from Earth moving through a trail of debris shed by comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, with particles striking the atmosphere at high speed and burning up as bright streaks. The full Moon on November 24 falls when the Moon is within 90 percent of its closest approach to Earth, which makes it a supermoon.
Timeline
November 17: Leonid meteor shower peaks.
November 24: Supermoon full Moon occurs.
November 25: The Hera mission reaches the asteroid Didymos and its moon Dimorphos.
December: The next full Moon, which falls at Christmas Eve, will be a supermoon even closer and brighter than November's.
The Big Picture
Supermoons follow directly from the Moon's elliptical orbit, which brings it closer to Earth at perigee and produces the larger apparent diameter seen on November 24 and the even closer December full Moon. The Hera mission's arrival at Didymos on November 25 adds a second space event in the same window, testing whether an asteroid can be deflected into a new orbit.
Anyone who wants to watch the Leonids can look up after midnight away from city lights, since the shower is best viewed from dark sites in both hemispheres. The November 24 supermoon will be visible to skywatchers without equipment.
The takeaway
Clear, dark skies offer the best chance to see the Leonids, and the supermoon on November 24 requires nothing more than stepping outside. Viewing conditions improve the farther you are from city lights.
What happens next
The Hera mission reaches the asteroid Didymos and its moon Dimorphos on November 25, and the closer December supermoon follows on Christmas Eve.
Further reading
For more on the skies overhead, explore our Space coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by IFLScience.
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