MeteorShowerCal

Southern Taurids 2026

The peak falls on Thursday 5 November 2026 at 18:53 UTC, with the Moon 12% lit — a dark sky — the Moon is close to new and takes almost nothing away.

Peak instant
Moon at peak
12% lit, waning crescent
Active
9 September 2026 – 20 November 2026
Zenithal hourly rate
7
Radiant declination
+13.9°
Rank for Moon in 2026
4 of 12

What 2026 actually offers

Of the twelve showers on this site, 3 peak under a darker Moon in 2026. The darkest peak of the year belongs to the Perseids, with the Moon 0% lit. Moonlight does not remove meteors, it removes the faint ones: with a population index of 2.3, every magnitude of extra sky brightness divides the count you see by 2.3.

The radiant passes overhead at 13.9°N and never rises at all south of 76.1°S. That geometry does not change from year to year, so if this shower does not work from your latitude, no amount of moonless sky will fix it — check the latitude table before making plans around the date.

What is not knowable this far out is cloud. Numerical forecasts are useful inside about three days and steadily less so beyond that, which is why the verdict for a specific night is computed on the night from your own coordinates rather than published in advance.

The Moon across the whole activity window

Moon illumination during the Southern Taurids activity window in 2026 Percentage of the Moon's disc illuminated, sampled twice a day from 9 September 2026 to 20 November 2026. The dashed line marks the shower's peak on 5 November 2026, when the Moon is 12% lit. 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% peak 9 Sept 23 Sept 8 Oct 22 Oct 6 Nov 20 Nov Moon lit (%)
Illuminated fraction of the Moon through the 10 September – 20 November activity window. A dip well away from the peak is a night the shower is still active and the sky is still dark — often a better trade than the peak itself.

The week around the peak

Moon illumination on each date at 00:00 UTC. Rate falls away either side of the peak, so a much darker sky two nights out is only worth taking when the activity window is broad — this one runs 10 September – 20 November.

Date Weekday Moon lit Phase
2 November 2026 Monday 48% last quarter
3 November 2026 Tuesday 37% last quarter
4 November 2026 Wednesday 27% waning crescent
5 November 2026 peak Thursday 18% waning crescent
6 November 2026 Friday 11% waning crescent
7 November 2026 Saturday 5% waning crescent
8 November 2026 Sunday 2% new Moon

Get reminded before the 2026 peak

One email seven days before a peak so you can keep the night free, and one on the evening itself with the verdict for your location. If your sky is going to be hopeless that night, the second email tells you the next good night instead of pretending otherwise.

You will get a confirmation email first — nothing is sent until you click the link in it. Every email carries a one-click unsubscribe. We store your address, the rounded coordinates and your time zone, and nothing else. See the privacy notice.

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