Quadrantid meteor shower 2023: How to watch

Highlights

• The 2023 Quadrantid meteor shower peaks over the night of Jan. 3-4. You may also see increased numbers of meteors a few days before and after the peak.
• To watch, go to the darkest place you can, let your eyes adjust, and spend some time looking at the sky. With patience, you occasionally will see a streak of light that is a meteor. If you want more details on times and directions for your location, we recommend timeanddate.com.
• The annual Quadrantid meteor shower is caused by the Earth passing through debris from a near-Earth object called 2003 EH1.

The 2023 Quadrantid meteor shower peaks on the night between Jan. 3 and Jan. 4, 2023. 

The Quadrantids have a shorter peak and lower hourly rate compared to more well-known meteor showers like the Perseids and Geminids. From a dark sky location, you can expect to see an average of about 25 meteors per hour during the 6-hour peak. Use timeanddate.com to find ideal times and viewing directions for your location.

There will be a nearly full Moon in the night sky during the 2023 Quadrantids, which will make viewing more difficult. To watch, go to the darkest place you can, let your eyes adjust, and look overhead — but avoid staring directly at the Moon.

The Quadrantid meteor shower is caused by debris from a near-Earth object called 2003 EH1. The object is likely an asteroid, a dead comet, or a possible "rock comet." The debris from EH1 often produces bright fireballs.

What is a meteor? 

Meteors are streaks of light in the sky caused by dust and sand-sized rocks burning up as they hit Earth's upper atmosphere at very high speeds — tens of kilometers per second.

These small particles create bright streaks of light you can see from the ground at night. In general, the bigger the piece of space dust, the brighter the meteor. 

Space is full of dust, so on a typical night from a dark location, you might see up to 10 meteors per hour — no shower required!

What is a meteor shower?

Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through debris shed by a comet or asteroid. They reoccur at about the same time every year, when Earth comes around in its orbit and passes through the debris again.

Two of the best meteor showers of the year are the Perseids, which peak in mid-August, and the Geminids, which peak in mid-December. The Perseids often get more media attention because they occur during the northern hemisphere summer. However, the Geminids typically produce more meteors.

Meteor showers are named after the constellation that contains the radiant of the shower. The radiant is where the meteors appear to emanate from — if you draw a line back along the meteors, all of the lines will meet at the same point. This is an effect of the Earth speeding through the comet debris, meaning when you watch a meteor shower, you're seeing direct evidence of our planet orbiting the Sun!

How to watch a meteor shower

All you need to watch a meteor shower is your eyes, patience, and a mostly cloud-free night. Go out, get comfortable, and stare at the sky. Typically the best time to see a meteor shower is between midnight and pre-dawn, because that's when you are on the leading side of the Earth, watching the comet debris come at you like rain hitting a car windshield.

You don’t have to stare in the direction of the radiant; in fact, meteors farther away from it will appear longer. It is often said that an ideal place to look is 45 degrees away from the radiant, but the most important factor is getting to a dark location away from city lights, letting your eyes adjust for several minutes, and looking at the darkest patch of sky you can. 

Go out, look up at the night sky and have fun!