Space enthusiasts and amateur astronomers will have plenty of action to enjoy throughout 2026, with supermoons, solar eclipses and meteor showers across the night skies.  

Coming up: the March 3 lunar eclipse, Lyrids and Aquariids meteor showers 

A total lunar eclipse will take place on March 3 and will be the last one until December 31, 2028. 

Best viewing of this eclipse will be in the US and Canada, across the Pacific Ocean, West and Central Asia, and Australia.  

The Lyrids meteor shower will occur from April 16-25, peaking on April 22, near the constellation Lyra. 

It will be followed by the Aquariids near the constellation Aquarius. The first shower is the Eta Aquariids, visible April 19 until May 28, and then for people living south of the equator, the Delta Aquariids from July 12 until August 23.  

August eclipses and Perseids meteor shower — a big month for stargazing 

There will be plenty to see in August, including a total solar eclipse across western Europe and a partial lunar eclipse.  

On August 12, Iceland and Spain will be treated to the best view of the total solar eclipse on August 12. The rest of Europe, parts of the US, Canada and northwest Africa will witness a partial eclipse.    

Then on August 28, a partial lunar eclipse will favor those parts of the world that missed out on the total eclipse in March. Best viewing will be across South America. It will also be visible in parts of the United States and Canada, Europe and Africa.  

August is also the best time to see the very active Perseids, near the constellation Perseus. Beginning on July 17 and peaking on August 13, up to 150 shooting stars may be visible.  

More meteor showers in 2026  

From September, there will be seven other meteor showers to end the year.  

Taurids, visible September 10 until November 20 in the southern hemisphere, October 20 until December 10 in the northern hemisphere, near the constellation of Taurus.  

Draconids, visible October 6-10, peaking October 9, near the constellation of Draco.  

Orionids, visible from October 2 until November 7, peaking on October 21, near the constellation of Orion.  

Leonids, visible November 6-30, peaking on November 18, near the constellation of Leo.  

Geminids, visible December 4-20, peaking on December 14, near the constellation of Gemini.  

Ursids, visible December 17-26, peaking on December 22, near the constellation of Ursa Minor.  

The Quadrantids, visible December 28 continue into the first week of January 2027. This is a major meteor shower, that takes place near the constellation Boötes, in a similar part of space to the Ursids. 

When is the next supermoon of 2026? 

There are three supermoons in 2026.  

Supermoons occur when the moon nears its perigee (its closest approach to the Earth). It can appear up to 10% larger and much brighter than usual as it rises.  

The first supermoon of 2026 was on January 3. Two will close out the year, one on November 24 and another on December 24. 

Edited by: Z Abbany 

Editor's note: This article is regularly updated.