Eta Aquariids in Los Angeles

The Eta Aquariids meteor shower peaks from Los Angeles around May 5-6, with up to 40 meteors per hour under ideal conditions. In 2026 a new moon means dark skies, and from Los Angeles the radiant in Aquarius climbs to 22° above the east horizon around 04:20. Local best viewing window: 03:10–04:20 PDT on the peak night, about 1.2 hours of astronomical darkness. Scaled to that altitude, the 40/hour headline figure works out to roughly 15 meteors an hour from Los Angeles under a genuinely dark sky. The radiant stays low from Los Angeles, so expect fewer meteors but longer, shallower trails near the horizon. Tonight: solid cover, with no real breaks forecast.