Stargazers and early risers are in for a stellar show this week, with one of the biggest meteor showers in the southern hemisphere due to light up the skies. The meteors — called the Eta Aquariids – pass through the atmosphere every year, but 2025 is due to be particularly luminous as the moon won’t be visible when they arrive. Here’s how to catch a view of the celestial delight.
The good news is this particular meteor shower not only happens every year, but spans multiple days. Dr. Rebecca McElroy, an astrophysicist from the University of Southern Queensland, said Wednesday, May 7, would be the “best day” for stargazers, with around two dozen meteors expected to pass per hour. However, if it happens to be cloudy that day, you won’t blink and miss it. The shower will continue to have a strong showing on the days preceding and following May 7, before tapering off at the end of the month. “Often these things are quite short-lived … it’ll peak this week but it will continue,” McElroy said.
Unfortunately, though, the best viewing window is between 3am and 5am – “not for the faint-hearted or those who feel the cold.” If you happen to find yourself awake in the early dawn, though, you’re in luck.
The Eta Aquariids can be viewed anywhere in the world, but they are best seen from the southern hemisphere where the shower will rise in the pre-dawn, darkened sky. In Australia, every state and territory will be able to witness the display. McElroy said areas with the lowest light pollution would have the greatest visibility – such as Uluru and remote parts of the Northern Territory. “These things aren’t enormously bright, so you want to get away from as much light pollution as you can,” McElroy said. “If you’re in the city, get into the suburbs and away from bright lights.”
Australia is lucky. McElroy noted that the best skies she has seen have been in Australia and in Chile because they look towards the centre of the Milky Way. “In the northern hemisphere, you spend most of the year looking to the outskirts, but our winter happens to have the Milky Way’s centre up in sky, and parts of Australia are very dark with a lot of protected areas, like national parks,” she said.
After heading outside, McElroy advised checking the weather first. “That’s the most important part. If it’s cloudy you’re not going to see anything, which is the curse of astronomy.” Then, turn off any porch or external lights and look away from bright street lights or your phone – which resets our daytime vision. “Our eyes have a high dynamic range, and it takes 10 to 20 minutes to adjust to the night sky,” McElroy said. “Grab a blanket, have a lie down and stay out there for an hour.” The constellation of Aquarius, where the meteors will appear, is in the north-east of the sky. Apps such as Star Mapper or Stellarium can help display the correct spot – but make sure you keep your brightness down.
The Eta Aquariids are caused by Earth passing through debris left behind by Halley’s Comet hundreds of years ago. Dr. McElroy explained that Earth passes through the debris field every year. As the bits of rock and dust hit the atmosphere at high speeds, they burn up and create bright streaks – creating what we call meteors. “Meteors tend to look like a bright streak going by, like a shooting star, but more,” McElroy said. “Occasionally they happen just randomly – when something of a high density is in our path.” It is known as “Eta Aquariids” because of the part of the sky in which the meteors appear – which is near the star Eta Aquarii in the constellation of Aquarius.
There are four meteor showers similar to Eta Aquariids which occur throughout the year – most notably, the Orionids meteor shower, which is also caused by the Halley’s Comet debris trail and happens in October. But McElroy said meteor showers can also be a great gateway to look at the rest of the sky. “A meteor shower is great, but we are blessed with fantastic skies in Australia, especially in the winter,” she said. “We will be able to see whole band of Milky Way, and if you stay outside for longer, you’ll see more and more fainter stars light up. You can look for the Southern Cross, spot some star clusters or the Emu constellation. “Come for the meteors, stay for the Milky Way.”
The Eta Aquariids meteor shower is here, and it’s not too late to catch the best view! The celestial show is expected to be particularly bright this year. Remnants from Halley’s Comet, the Eta Aquariids meteor shower appears annually at this time of year featuring a procession of space debris streaking across the night sky, but 2025 promises a particularly impressive show.
The Aquariids meteors don’t produce bright flashes known as fireballs, but they are famous for being fast and leaving spectacular glowing trains in their wake. Because the Moon won’t be visible when the meteors arrive, this year’s shower promises to be particularly bright. The shower began on April 19 and will continue until late May, so it’s already underway.
Weather permitting, the best opportunity to see the full show is pre-dawn on Thursday morning, May 8, when Aquarius, the constellation the meteors appear to come from, is highest in the north-east sky. If you want to catch the most meteors, you should head outside between 3am and 5am. If conditions are right, up to about 50 meteors can be seen per hour during the Eta Aquariid’s peak in the Southern Hemisphere.
The meteors cross the sky at speeds of up to about 65 kilometres per second, and NASA notes that’s fast enough to leave a glowing trail of debris behind that can last for several seconds, or even minutes. To catch the best view, experts recommend heading to locations with minimal light pollution and allowing your eyes to adjust to the darkness for about 15 to 20 minutes.
As the meteors may not appear immediately, staying outside in the dark for at least an hour is advisable to have the best chance of witnessing them. Also, the meteors won’t appear at regular intervals – while there may be none for several minutes, that could be followed by a burst of activity all at once. So, grab your blankets, head out, and enjoy the celestial display!
