Good news for those who are late to the party: the Perséides haven't disappeared yet! The famous meteor shower reached its peak on the night of August 12-13, 2026, but the swarm remains active until about August 24. According to the International Meteor Organization (IMO), episodes of heightened activity have even been observed in some years up to 0.7 to 1.5 days after the main maximum. Nothing guarantees such a surge in 2026, but the Perseids will therefore still be observable on the night of Thursday, August 13 to Friday, August 14. You should simply expect activity to be lower than at the peak.
To maximize your chances of catching the shooting stars, you’ll want to wait until the second half of the night. Observations are possible from 11 p.m. to midnight, but the window to target is roughly between 1 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. As the hours pass, the Perseid radiant, located in the northeast in the constellation Perseus, climbs higher in the sky and makes viewing more favorable. After 4:30, the first hints of dawn begin to dim the visibility.
The main obstacle remains light pollution. In Paris and other heavily urbanized areas, the faint shooting stars may go unnoticed. So it’s best to get away from the lights, if possible reach a darker sector in the outer suburbs, and find a spot with a clear, broad view of the night sky.
The peak has passed, but the show isn’t over yet. In Île-de-France, the night of August 13-14 still offers a chance to glimpse the Perseids. And for anyone who hasn’t quite had their fill of stargazing, the meteor shower runs through August 24!
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