Even though Thame isn’t officially a dark skies area, it’s still a great place to see a meteor shower. We have low enough levels of light pollution to see some great shooting stars.

Here are the dates for the meteor showers in 2023 – the first one being his week! So look up to the skies and make a wish.

Explore the Dark Sky Discovery website here.

 

Tips for spotting a shooting star

  1. Ditch the binoculars and telescope – you’ll increase your chances by using the naked eye and taking in as much sky in your field of view as possible.
  2. Be patient – sometimes it can be like waiting for a bus.
  3. Wait until it’s really dark – even though you can see a meteor/shooting star any time after sunset, they’ll be easier to spot between midnight and sunrise.
  4. Don’t just focus on one area of the sky – spend time looking at different areas of the sky as many showers will appear anywhere in the sky.
  5. Get comfy so you can star gaze for longer! Grab a blanket and a hot drink and gaze for as long as possible to increase your chances of seeing a shooting star.

Meteor shower dates 2023

Meteor shower Date of peak  Date range Possible hourly rate  More information
Quadrantids 3-4 January 28 Dec-12 Jan 110 Fine trains from bluish or yellowish-white meteors
Lyrids 22-23 April 14-30 April 18 Bright fast meteors, some with trains. Associated with Comet Thatcher
Eta Aquariids 6 May 19 Apr-28 May 50 Low in sky. Associated with Comet Halley
Alpha Capricornids 30 July 3 July -15 Aug 5 Yellow slow fireballs
Delta Aquariids 30 July 12 July – 23 Aug 25 Steady stream of meteors over several days but a low rate per hour
Perseids 12-13 August 17 July – 24 Aug 100 Many bright fast meteors with trains. Associated with Comet Swift-Tuttle (1737, 1862, 1992)
Draconids 8-9 October 6-10 October 10 Associated with Comet 21/P Giacobini-Zimmer
Orionids 21-22 October 2 Oct – 7 Nov 25 Fast with fine trains. Associated with Comet Halley
Taurids

Southern: 10-11 Oct

Northern: 12-13 Nov

Southern: 10 Sep – 20 Nov

Northern: 20 Oct – 10 Dec

 5 Very slow meteors
Leonids 17-18 November 6-30 November 10 Fast bright meteors with fine trains. Associated with Comet Tempel-Tuttle
Geminids 14-15 December 4-20 December 150 Plenty of bright meteors, few trains
Ursids 22-23 December 17-26 December 10 Sparse shower. Associated with comet 8P/Tuttle

Happy star gazing!

Author

  • Laura Fellows, Thame.net

    Thame resident Laura Fellows is the owner, main editor and general dogsbody at Thame.net. Laura has a background in Marketing and a passion for supporting people. So Thame.net came her way in 2020. In 2021 Laura invested significantly and Thame.net was relaunched with a new brand, website, infrastructure and a lot more behind-the-scenes stuff. Outside of Thame.net and mum life, Laura still wears her marketing consulting and copywriting hat but is hoping to hang that up soon to continue mentoring people back to positive health and confidence by combining science, psychology and 20 years of experience.

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