Eta Aquariids in New York

The Eta Aquariids meteor shower peaks from New York around May 5-6, with up to 40 meteors per hour under ideal conditions. In 2026 a new moon means dark skies, and from New York the radiant in Aquarius climbs to 16° above the east horizon around 04:00. Local best viewing window: 03:20–04:00 EDT on the peak night, about 0.7 hours of astronomical darkness. Scaled to that altitude, the 40/hour headline figure works out to roughly 11 meteors an hour from New York under a genuinely dark sky. The radiant stays low from New York, so expect fewer meteors but longer, shallower trails near the horizon. Tonight: heavy cover, with only occasional breaks.