America's Best Annual Meteor Show — Peak Night December 13–14
Under clear, dark skies. City light pollution reduces rates significantly.
Solar Cycle 25 reaches its maximum in 2026 — the most intense sunspot activity in two decades — driving spectacular auroras visible across much of the US.
Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Alaska, and the Dakotas offer the clearest northern lights views when geomagnetic storms strike.
Coronal mass ejections shoot billions of tons of charged particles toward Earth. Our magnetic field deflects most — but funnels some toward the poles, painting the sky.
Spring and fall equinoxes enhance geomagnetic activity. March and September 2026 already broke 50-year aurora visibility records across 35 US states.