So you’ve asked for some astronomy equipment, but you want to start stargazing straight away. Luckily, there will be three more meteor showers in 2021 that you can see with your naked eye.
That’s right, you don’t need a telescope – in fact, you’re better off without one – or a star map. All you need is to work out roughly where the shower will originate, lie back, and enjoy the show.
Read on to find out when the next meteor shower will grace the skies above the UK. Or, check out the full Moon UK calendar or read our guide to astronomy for beginners.
What is a meteor shower?
A meteor shower is a stream of shooting stars that appears to come from one particular area of the sky.
As comets travel around the Sun, they leave a trail of debris behind. When these fragments, most of which are smaller than a grain of sand, enter the Earth’s atmosphere, we call them meteors.
Meteors travel at incredibly high speeds and almost all of them completely disintegrate on their journey through the atmosphere. What we see is the flash of light they give off as they disintegrate.
A meteor shower is named for the area of the sky where the meteors appear to originate. For example, the Lyrids seem to come from the constellation of Lyra, and the Leonids from Leo.
When is the next meteor shower in the UK?
The next meteor shower to grace the skies of the UK is the Geminids. The shower is expected to be visible between 3 and 16 December, with the peak on 14 November.
If you miss this shower, don’t worry: you can catch the Ursids later this year. The dates of when you can see each shower, plus the peak and the number you can expect to see per hour, are below.
Geminids
Visible: 3-16 December
Peak: 14 December
Rate/hour: 120
Ursids
Visible: 17-26 December
Peak: 22-23 December
Rate/hour: 10
Quadrantids
Visible: 28 December 2021 to 12 January 2022
Peak: 3-4 January
Rate/hour: 120
Lyrids
Visible: 13-29 April
Peak: 22 April
Rate/hour: 18
Eta Aquariids
Visible: 18 April – 27 May
Peak: 6 May
Rate/hour: 40
Delta Aquariids
Visible: 13 July – 24 August
Peak: 30 July
Rate/hour: 20
Alpha Capricornids
Visible: 2 July – 14 August
Peak: 30 July
Rate/hour: 5
Perseids
Visible: 16 July – 23 August
Peak: 12-13 August
Rate/hour: 150
Draconids
Visible: 6-10 October
Peak: 8-9 October
Rate/hour: Variable
Orionids
Visible: 2 October – 7 November
Peak: 21 October
Rate/hour: 15
Taurids
Visible: 20 October – 10 December
Peak: 12 November
Rate/hour: 5
Leonids
Visible: 6-30 November
Peak: 17-18 November
Rate/hour: 15