Will I see the Ursids 2026?
A small pre-Christmas shower with a radiant near the Little Dipper, so it never sets from northern Europe.
Quiet shower
Up to about 3 meteors an hour from a dark place near London around 06:26, with a full moon (97% lit) up at the best hour. In a city, about 0.
From your city, 22–23 Dec
Meteors an hour at the best moment of the peak night (local time), from a dark place nearby and from the city itself, and how often the sky was clear on that night (2014–2025).
UK & Ireland
| City | Best time | Dark sky | In the city | Clear sky |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 06:26 | 3/h | 0/h | 34% |
| Manchester | 06:41 | 3/h | 0/h | 19% |
| Birmingham | 06:41 | 4/h | 0/h | 32% |
| Bristol | 06:41 | 4/h | 0/h | 24% |
| Cardiff | 06:41 | 4/h | 0/h | 23% |
| Newcastle | 06:56 | 4/h | 0/h | 23% |
| Glasgow | 06:56 | 3/h | 0/h | 18% |
| Edinburgh | 06:56 | 3/h | 0/h | 22% |
| Belfast | 07:11 | 4/h | 0/h | 9% |
| Dublin | 06:56 | 3/h | 0/h | 32% |
Europe
| City | Best time | Dark sky | In the city | Clear sky |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paris | 07:11 | 4/h | 0/h | 15% |
| Amsterdam | 07:11 | 3/h | 0/h | 15% |
| Brussels | 07:11 | 4/h | 0/h | 24% |
| Berlin | 06:41 | 4/h | 0/h | 22% |
| Munich | 06:41 | 5/h | 1/h | 21% |
| Zurich | 06:41 | 5/h | 1/h | 26% |
| Vienna | 06:26 | 5/h | 1/h | 20% |
| Copenhagen | 06:56 | 3/h | 0/h | 23% |
| Stockholm | 06:41 | 3/h | 0/h | 10% |
| Oslo | 07:11 | 3/h | 0/h | 24% |
| Helsinki | 07:26 | 3/h | 0/h | 7% |
| Reykjavík | 08:41 | 3/h | 0/h | 26% |
| Madrid | 07:26 | 5/h | 1/h | 53% |
| Barcelona | 06:56 | 4/h | 1/h | 67% |
| Lisbon | 06:41 | 4/h | 1/h | 48% |
| Rome | 06:26 | 4/h | 1/h | 77% |
| Athens | 06:26 | 4/h | 0/h | – |
North America
| City | Best time | Dark sky | In the city | Clear sky |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 06:11 | 7/h | 1/h | 48% |
| Boston | 05:56 | 7/h | 1/h | 60% |
| Washington DC | 06:11 | 6/h | 1/h | 62% |
| Atlanta | 06:26 | 6/h | 1/h | 55% |
| Miami | 05:56 | 5/h | 1/h | 61% |
| Chicago | 05:56 | 6/h | 1/h | 39% |
| Dallas | 06:26 | 6/h | 1/h | 55% |
| Denver | 06:11 | 8/h | 1/h | 60% |
| Phoenix | 06:26 | 7/h | 1/h | 74% |
| Los Angeles | 05:41 | 7/h | 1/h | 63% |
| San Francisco | 06:11 | 7/h | 1/h | 62% |
| Seattle | 06:26 | 4/h | 1/h | 44% |
| Toronto | 06:26 | 5/h | 1/h | 41% |
| Montreal | 06:11 | 5/h | 1/h | 46% |
| Vancouver | 06:41 | 5/h | 1/h | 44% |
| Calgary | 07:11 | 5/h | 1/h | 58% |
Australia, New Zealand & South Africa
| City | Best time | Dark sky | In the city | Clear sky |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | – | 0/h | 0/h | 42% |
| Melbourne | – | 0/h | 0/h | 38% |
| Brisbane | – | 0/h | 0/h | 39% |
| Perth | – | 0/h | 0/h | 79% |
| Auckland | – | 0/h | 0/h | – |
| Christchurch | – | 0/h | 0/h | – |
| Cape Town | – | 0/h | 0/h | 64% |
The coming years
The moon decides most years. From a dark place near London at the best time:
| Year | Peak night (UK) | Moon | Meteors/h |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 22–23 Dec | 97% | 3 |
| 2027 | 22–23 Dec | 25% | 6 |
| 2028 | 21–22 Dec | 33% | 7 |
| 2029 | 21–22 Dec | 98% | 3 |
Ursids in numbers
- Active
- Dec 17 – Dec 26
- Radiant
- Ursa Minor (RA 217°, Dec +76°)
- Speed
- 33 km/s
- Parent
- comet 8P/Tuttle
- Best from
- the northern hemisphere
Other showers coming up
Northern Taurids
Quiet showerUp to 5 an hour in perfect skiesLeonids
Worth a lookUp to 15 an hour in perfect skiesGeminids
Great yearUp to 150 an hour in perfect skiesQuadrantids
Worth a lookUp to 80 an hour in perfect skiesUrsids: questions
It peaks at 13:26 UTC on 22 December 2026, so the best night is 22–23 December 2026 in the UK. It is active from Dec 17 – Dec 26.
In perfect skies up to 10 an hour (the ZHR). From a dark place near London, about 3 an hour at the best time; near New York 7; near Sydney 0. From a town, about a fifth of that.
Around 06:26 in the UK on the peak night, when the radiant in Ursa Minor is 63° high. Check your own city above.
Dust from comet 8P/Tuttle. The Earth crosses its trail every year; the bits burn up at 33 km/s about 100 km up. They seem to come from Ursa Minor, which gives the shower its name.
From airport weather records 2014–2025, the sky on the Ursids peak nights was on average 34% clear in London, 48% in New York and 42% in Sydney. Every city is in the table above.