US EditionJanuary’s full wolf supermoon and the Quadrantid meteor shower will start off the new year
The bright supermoon will obscure many meteors during the Quadrantid shower, which peaks early January and can produce up to five meteors per hour, experts said.
- Later this month, January's wolf moon will peak at 5:03 a.m. ET Saturday and overlap with the Quadrantid meteor shower, making meteors harder to spot.
- The Old Farmer's Almanac explains the wolf moon name links to increased wolf howling in winter, with other tribal names like Potawatomi `mkokisis` and Lakota `wiotehika wi` reflecting seasonal activity.
- The Quadrantid meteor shower radiates from Boötes, with the best viewing from midnight to dawn ET Sunday, according to Robert Lunsford, fireball report coordinator, American Meteor Society.
- Find a dark site for best viewing and you can safely observe the moon with your eyes or use binoculars or a telescope, Noah Petro urged sky‑gazers ahead of NASA's Artemis II mission.
- After the Quadrantids, skywatchers look to the Lyrid meteor shower in April and the Perseid meteor shower around August 12-13 under ideal dark conditions.
21 Articles
21 Articles
The new year begins and the astronomical calendar of 2026 also begins, which has important events that can be seen in the first days of January.The main phenomenon corresponds to the Supermoon, which is the moment when the satellite is closest to the Earth, in a phase called perigee.When to see the Supermoon of JanuaryThe Supermoon of January is this Saturday 3rd January and will be seen at its maximum point around 22:00 hours, according to the …
The Quadrantid Meteors and Earth at Perihelion Usher in the New Skywatching Year
It sneaks up on us, every annual flip of the calendar into the new year. If skies are clear, keep an eye out for the brief but strong Quadrantid meteors this weekend. The Quadrantids or ‘Quads’ have a brief but strong annual peak just after New Year’s Day. This also makes the shower notoriously elusive for observers.
The Quadrantides are the first meteor rains of this new year. Pic of intensity, visibility... What to expect?
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