Northern Taurids

When are the Northern Taurids?

The Northern Taurids are active from about 30 Oct to 23 Nov each year and peak around 6 Nov. Up to about 5 meteors an hour at the peak under ideal skies (the zenithal hourly rate). For local times, the Moon and the best hours from your place, open the page for the year.

• Northern Taurids 2026Active 30 Oct – 23 NovPeak ~6 Nov
• Northern Taurids 2027Active 30 Oct – 23 NovPeak ~7 Nov

How to watch

Watch any time from late evening onward; the radiant is highest around midnight. The Northern and Southern Taurids overlap in early November, so you may catch both.

Get as far from streetlights as you can and give your eyes at least 20 minutes to adjust to the dark. Every glance at a bright phone screen resets that, so keep it away or use a red night mode.

Lie back on a reclining chair or a mat and take in as much sky as possible, looking about halfway up rather than straight at the radiant. Meteors can appear anywhere; the ones far from the radiant have longer trails.

You need no equipment. Binoculars and telescopes show only a tiny patch of sky, so they make you miss meteors. Dress warmly, even in summer, and plan to watch for at least an hour: meteors come in clumps and lulls.

Where do they come from?

Like the Southern Taurids, they come from the debris complex of Comet 2P/Encke. The two branches are the two places where Earth crosses this broad stream.

Slow, often bright meteors at a few an hour.