Perseid Meteor Shower 2025 Peaks Tonight: Best Viewing Times, Locations, and Live Streams

The Perseid meteor shower—one of the most reliable annual sky shows—has returned, and stargazers are already reporting early “shooting stars.” Here’s everything you need to know to catch the 2025 display at its brilliant best. When and why the Perseids shine • Active window: 17 July – 24 August • Peak nights: predawn hours of 12–13 August, with rates up to 60 meteors per hour under ideal skies • Parent comet: 109P/Swift-Tuttle leaves a dusty trail that Earth plows through each August, creating bright, fast meteors that often leave persistent trains. Moonlight forecast: a challenge worth planning for The waning gibbous Moon will be about 84 % illuminated at peak, washing out some faint streaks. To maximize counts: 1. Watch after local moon-set (around 03:00 for mid-northern latitudes) or look during moon-rise gaps on 11 Aug. 2. Use your body, a building, or a tree line to block direct moonlight. 3. Choose dates a few days before or after the peak when rates are still high but lunar glare is lower; the weekend of 16–17 August offers darker third-quarter skies. Where to look • Radiant: constellation Perseus, rising northeast after 22:00. No telescope needed—lie back and scan 45° away from the radiant for the longest trails. • Best regions: rural locations at least 30 km from city light domes; higher elevations add an extra magnitude of faint meteors. Observation checklist ✓ Dark-sky site and reclining chair ✓ Layered clothing—nights can cool rapidly even in August ✓ Red-light flashlight to preserve night vision ✓ Smartphone set to airplane mode for uninterrupted dark adaptation ✓ Long-exposure camera or smartphone “night mode” to capture photographic streaks What to expect Early evening: sporadic bright Perseids low on the horizon. Midnight to dawn: activity builds as Perseus climbs overhead; expect short bursts called “meteor storms” when Earth intersects dense comet debris filaments. Science bonus Each meteor you witness is a pebble-sized fragment vaporizing 100 km overhead at 59 km/s. Astronomers collect these light curves to study comet composition and dust distribution, feeding models for future missions like NASA’s upcoming Comet Interceptor. Can’t get clear skies? • Live webcasts from the International Meteor Organization and Virtual Telescope Project stream the peak worldwide. • Social media hashtags #PerseidMeteorShower and #Perseids2025 will feature real-time images and counts for comparison. Bottom line Despite bright moonlight, the 2025 Perseid meteor shower still promises dozens of brilliant fireballs per hour for patient observers under transparent skies. Mark 12–13 August on your calendar, scout a dark spot, and prepare for one of nature’s most dazzling free shows.