Western New York sky watchers have had a relatively eventless 2026 — a brief lunar eclipse that was at its best just before sunrise, no comets that were visible to the naked eye, and, as compared to recent years, a tameness to the northern lights.
The annual Perseids meteor shower will more than make up for all of that.
That shower, which has already started but peaks this year on the overnight of August 12 to 13, is usually the most prolific of such shows every year, regularly producing an amazing 60 to 100 shooting stars, of various intensities, each hour around the peak.
This year, the peak coincides with a new moon (which means no moon), giving skywatchers the best viewing opportunity since 2021. Over the past four years, the moon phases around the peak, including full moons in two years, have obscured the show, masking most of the shooting stars.
The shower peaks in a few weeks, but you will see a higher-than-normal volume of meteors from now until then. After that, we’ll have passed the debris field and numbers will drop off dramatically, so much so that the days that immediately follow the 12th could be duds.
Dark skies are critical to enjoying this show. You have to leave the light pollution of the cities and villages. For my Niagara County readers, the best places to watch will be away from the three cities and near the Lake Ontario shore. My Allegany County readers are encouraged to get away from the villages and park at state land or get as close to the Pennsylvania border as possible, where some of the darkest skies in the entire northeast can be found. For those of you who are the most ardent fans of celestial sights, it would be an excellent time to book a getaway to Allegany State Park or the Adirondacks.
If you look for the shooting stars prior to midnight on any given night, you will be disappointed and wonder what the hype is all about. You have to go outdoors after midnight and hang there until dawn to really appreciate it. That’s because it is those hours that have our viewing area positioned towards the incoming dust (yes, most of these brilliant streakers and fireballs are nothing more than dust).
Because of the way we are tilted into the incoming particles, all of these meteors will appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus, hence the name, which after midnight you will be able to find at due northeast about halfway up the sky.
Give yourself plenty of time to enjoy the show — maybe an hour or two, because the shooting stars can come in waves. Also, to get the best effect, it takes a while for your eyes to adjust to the darkness (sometimes as much as 20 minutes), so don’t fiddle with your flashlight and, above all, don’t go onto your smartphone to post or text about every fireball you see. Keep it dark. If you have to use a light, get one of the red flashlights or pen lights that backyard astronomers use.
It’s been five years since we’ve had the chance to appreciate the Perseids at their best and brightest, so if you don’t mind screwing up your sleep cycle and being a little groggy at work or while on vacation, get up (or stay up) and experience this amazing celestial display during and around its peak. It will be worth the torture, coffee, and naps this year. You can count on that … unless wildfire smoke has other plans.