The Geminids from Hawaiʻi
When the Geminids peak this year from Hawaiʻi, how high the radiant climbs at 19.8°N, and what the moon does to the night.
The 2026 peak night, computed for Hawaiʻi
Sunday, December 13
104 days away.
Best around 2:23 AM HST, when the radiant tops out about 77° up.
The moon is 22% lit that night. Out of the way, the sky stays dark.
Planning further out: the next peak lands Dec 13, 2027, with the moon 99% lit. After that, the next peak with the moon this far out of the way is Dec 12, 2028, at 7% lit.
✉️ Sky-event email alerts
Next up: The Geminids peak, December 13. We send one email about three days before it, with the sky forecast from up on the mountain, and the same for the handful of other showers a year worth the drive. Nothing else, and one click to stop.
What you'll actually see
Slow and bright, often with a yellow cast, sometimes green or orange. A Geminid crosses the sky at almost half a Perseid's speed, which makes them easy to catch and easy to point out to someone next to you.
Debris from 3200 Phaethon, an asteroid that behaves like a burnt-out comet and swings closer to the sun than any other named asteroid. A rock's debris, not a snowball's, which is why these meteors look different.
Entry speed: about 35 km/s.
When it runs
Active from about December 4 to 17. The strongest annual shower of the modern sky, and it has been strengthening for decades.
From 19.8°N
The radiant clears the horizon by mid-evening and rides high through the small hours, so this is the rare major shower that does not demand an alarm clock. December nights on the leeward side are routinely clear, and at 19.8°N the radiant tops out higher than the Perseids' ever does.
Making the night work
The technique is the same for every shower: dark spot, no telescope, eyes adapted, radiant up. The rules live on the calendar page.
Tours & booking
No 4WD, or want it handled?
Summit tours from Kona, Waikoloa and Hilo bundle the 4WD, parkas, dinner and a telescope, typically $150 to $330 a person.
Tour or drive yourself? The honest comparison
Tour links are affiliate links to Viator; we may earn a commission at no cost to you.
Peak instants and radiant heights computed by this site from solar longitude with astronomy-engine; stream facts from the American Meteor Society and IMO shower notes. Independent project, affiliated with no observatory or agency.