Meteor shower

Lyrids 2026

Active Thu 16 Apr, 00:00 → Sat 25 Apr, 23:59

Use your naked eyes. Meteors can appear anywhere in the sky, so a telescope's narrow field of view is not helpful.

Find a dark open area with a wide sky view. Allow 20–30 minutes for dark adaptation — avoid phone screens (or use Red Mode).

The radiant is in Lyra, but for longer meteor trails look roughly 30–60° away from it rather than directly at it.

Reference ZHR

Idealised zenithal hourly rate under perfect dark skies with the radiant at the zenith. Real observed rates are usually lower.

Speed

49 km/s

Parent body

Comet Thatcher (C/1861 G1)

Global maximum

Wed 22 Apr, 20:00