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4w ago

Eta Aquariid Meteor Shower Peaks Tonight Under Bright Moon

Moonlight will mute the display, leaving southern viewers with the best rates.

The Eta Aquariids meteor shower, which peaked in early May this year, was captured in this stunning image by astrophotographer Petr Horálek. It was taken near San Pedro de Atacama, a Chilean town about 50 km away from the Chajnantor observatory site, where APEX and ALMA, astronomical facilities co-owned by ESO, are located. The Eta Aquariids meteors are caused by leftover debris from Halley’s comet and make up the bright, arrow-like darts of light in the photo. But don’t stop there: this image is literally full to the brim of astronomical phenomena.  The luminous object towards the bottom of the sky is Venus. Above it, arranged in a satisfying line, are several planets in conjunction. Directly above Venus is Jupiter, followed by the bright red Mars, and then Saturn. Conjunctions such as this are rare, often occurring decades apart. The planets also trace the zodiacal light, the faint glow stretching like a pillar, up towards the bright stellar-dense centre of the Milky Way, our home galaxy.  Zodiacal light is often seen from dark sites like ESO observatories just after sunset, or before sunrise, and is the reflected sunlight from dust particles in the plane of the Solar System. The dust comes from asteroids, passing comets, and even from other inner Solar System planets, such as Mars. Here we see the zodiacal light paired with the red sunset over the mountains and volcanoes surrounding the Chajnantor site, a spectacular backdrop to this dreamy night sky. Link Annotated version of this image
Image
The Eta Aquariids meteor shower appears over the night sky in Kandalama, Sri Lanka, on May 5, 2025.

Overview

  • The shower, which peaks Tuesday night into early Wednesday, is best seen in the last hours before dawn.
  • An 84% waning gibbous moon will wash out faint meteors, cutting expected counts to fewer than 10 per hour for many in the Northern Hemisphere.
  • Southern Hemisphere observers have the best chance, with up to about 50 meteors per hour under dark skies according to NASA and the American Meteor Society.
  • For better odds, go to a dark location, face east before dawn, block the moon with a building or hill, and give your eyes 20 to 30 minutes to adjust.
  • The Eta Aquariids run from April 19 to May 28 and come from Halley’s Comet debris, with fast meteors that can leave brief glowing trains and more chances on later, darker mornings.