Orionids 2026: how to see the meteors from Halley's Comet

The Orionids are small pieces of Halley’s Comet. Each October, Earth passes through the dust the comet left behind. In 2026 the peak is on October 21, at about 18:00 UTC.

The rate at the peak is about 20 meteors an hour. That number is for a perfect sky, with the radiant overhead. From a dark place you see fewer. The shower is active for weeks, so the nights next to the peak are good too.

This year the Moon is a problem. At the peak it is about 80% lit. It lights the evening sky and sets in the early morning. After it sets, you have a dark sky until dawn.

When to look

Look on the night of October 21 to 22, after the Moon sets. Here are the moonset times for that night:

The night before, October 20 to 21, the Moon sets about 1 hour earlier in most places, and about 30 minutes earlier in Sydney. That gives you more dark time.

The radiant is in Orion. It is highest at about 5 am, and at about 4 am in Tokyo. So the last 2 hours before dawn are the best.

Where to look

The meteors seem to come from a point in Orion, near the red star Betelgeuse. But they cross the whole sky. Do not stare at Orion. Look at a wide part of the sky, about halfway up.

See the Orionids on the live sky map, from your place, at the best time to look.

Where to go

A dark sky shows many more meteors than a town sky. Find a park or a reserve in our list of stargazing places, or see the dark places for the Orionids in your country.

How to watch

  1. Set an alarm. The best hours are before dawn.
  2. Dress warm. You will sit still for a long time.
  3. Lie back on a chair or a mat, so you can see a lot of sky.
  4. Put your phone away. Your eyes need 20 to 30 minutes in the dark to see faint meteors.

Why the Orionids are fast

Halley’s Comet comes back to the inner solar system about every 76 years. Its dust hits our air at about 66 km a second. That is very fast. About half of the Orionids leave a glowing trail that stays in the sky after the meteor is gone.

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