When the Leonids Peak Each Year
The Leonid meteor shower is an annual event tied to comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, which completes its orbit around the Sun roughly every 33 years. The shower is active from about November 6 to 30 each year, with the peak typically occurring around November 17 or 18. The American Meteor Society lists the Leonids among the major annual showers and provides updated peak forecasts based on international observer data American Meteor Society.
During a normal peak, the Leonids produce about 15 meteors per hour under clear, dark skies, according to NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office. In years when the comet has recently passed perihelion, enhanced filaments of debris can cause short bursts of higher activity, but these are usually modest compared with historic storms in 1966 and 2001.
Best Dates and Times for 2024 and 2025
For 2024, the Leonid peak is expected around November 17, with the best viewing after midnight local time when the shower radiant in Leo climbs higher. In 2025, the peak is forecast for the night of November 17 into the early morning of November 18, with a thin waxing crescent Moon providing low interference. The International Meteor Organization publishes annual activity forecasts that incorporate recent observations and dynamical modeling of the comet's debris trails International Meteor Organization.
Observers in the Northern Hemisphere generally see higher rates because the radiant is higher in the pre-dawn sky, while southern viewers can still spot early-arising Leonids in the eastern sky before dawn. The best conditions are clear, dark skies away from city lights, with observers allowing about 20 to 30 minutes for eyes to adapt to the dark.
How to Watch the Leonids Effectively
NASA recommends lying on a blanket or reclining chair facing a wide area of the sky, rather than staring at the radiant, to maximize the number of meteors captured in your field of view. Use red-light flashlights to preserve night vision, and avoid looking at bright phone screens or other light sources for at least 10 minutes before and during the observation session NASA.
Meteor counts are highest in the hours between local midnight and dawn, when the observer's part of Earth faces forward into the comet's orbital path. For those who cannot get to a dark site, live streams from astronomy organizations and observatories provide an alternative way to follow the shower in real time Slooh.