Quiet solstice shower from a circumpolar radiant — visible all night, occasionally surprises.
See the live viewing map for the Ursids →The Ursids reach maximum activity on the night of Tue, Dec 22, 2026 (computed from the shower's solar-longitude peak, the method the International Meteor Organization uses). The shower is active from Thu, Dec 17 to Mon, Dec 28.
The often-quoted ZHR of 10 is a theoretical ceiling (perfectly dark sky, radiant overhead). Real counts depend on your sky: from a dark-sky site expect a meaningful fraction of that; from a suburb, far fewer. Meteorcast computes the expected visible rate for your exact spot and night.
The moon is 99% illuminated on the peak night — close to full — only the brightest meteors will punch through.
Somewhere dark, with an open sky and clear weather. Use the live map to compare cloud forecast, air transparency, and light pollution anywhere in North America, and to find ranked dark-sky sites near you.
Peak times computed from the shower's solar longitude (IMO method) with precession correction; moon illumination from high-precision ephemeris. Forecasts on the live map combine ECMWF, GFS, and ICON weather models with smoke, transparency, and light-pollution analysis.