METEOR SHOWER · PEAK AUG 12–13, 2026
Up to 87 meteors an hour over Milwaukee, and zero moonlight.
The Perseid meteor shower peaks over Milwaukee on the night of August 12–13, 2026, under a new moon at 0% illumination: zero moonlight all night. True darkness runs 9:48 PM to 4:05 AM; the radiant climbs to 60° by 3:48 AM, good for up to 87 meteors per hour under truly dark skies.
THE RADIANT, HOUR BY HOUR
Higher radiant, more meteors: the pre-dawn hours win.
| LOCAL TIME | RADIANT ALTITUDE | DIRECTION |
|---|---|---|
| 10 PM | 20° | NNE |
| 11 PM | 25° | NNE |
| 12 AM | 31° | NE |
| 1 AM | 38° | NE |
| 2 AM | 46° | NE |
| 3 AM | 54° | NE |
| 4 AM | 62° | NE |
HOW TO ACTUALLY SEE THEM
- Go after midnight; 2–5 AM is the prime window.Milwaukee turns your side of Earth into the shower's windshield in the small hours.
- Leave the phone in your pocket for 20 minutes.Night vision takes that long to build, and one glance at a screen resets it to zero.
- No equipment. Eyes only: telescopes and binoculars see too little sky. A reclining chair and a blanket beat any optics.
SKY DARKNESS
Bortle 8Bright city sky: expect the Moon, planets, and the brightest stars; faint objects need a trip out of town. Meteors reward darkness more than any other sky sight: a 30–60 minute drive away from the city glow improves the sky by a class or two and multiplies what you'll count.
SAME DAY
The same new Moon, twelve hours earlier
That same afternoon, the Moon takes a bite out of the Sun: 0.8% covered from Milwaukee at 12:25 PM. Same Moon, same day: that's why the night is moonless.
Same night, an eclipse in the afternoon →Common questions
When exactly should I watch?
Rates build after midnight and are best between 2 and 5 AM. True darkness in Milwaukee runs from 9:48 PM to 4:05 AM that night, and the radiant is highest (60°) around 3:48 AM: the last dark hour is the strongest.
Where in the sky should I look?
Nowhere in particular: Perseids streak across the whole sky. Their radiant sits in the northeast in Perseus, 60° up at its best, and meteors look longest about 45° away from it. Lie back and take in as much sky as you can.
Is Milwaukee dark enough?
Milwaukee's city-center sky is roughly Bortle 8 (city sky), so expect a fraction of the dark-sky rate downtown. Bright city sky: expect the Moon, planets, and the brightest stars; faint objects need a trip out of town. A 30–60 minute drive away from the city glow improves the sky by a class or two and multiplies the meteors you'll count.
Will clouds block it?
The latest forecast shows 5% cloud cover over Milwaukee in the core viewing hours. Forecasts firm up as the night approaches; check back the evening before for the final call.