Durban, South Africa
Leonids 2026 from Durban
The Leonids peak on the night of Monday, November 16. From Durban the best time to watch is the last dark hour, before about 3:53 AM, when the radiant is low in the northeast. Under a dark sky that means up to about 7 meteors an hour. From inside the city you will see far fewer.
The night at a glance
- Gets dark
- 7:27 PM
- Radiant rises
- 1:17 AM
- Best time
- The last hour before 3:53 AM
- Light again
- 3:53 AM
- Moon
- 44% lit, sets around 12:17 AM
Times are local to Durban, worked out for the city centre. Dark means the sun is 12 degrees below the horizon.
Where to look
Meteors can appear anywhere in the sky. They streak away from the radiant, which sits low in the northeast at its best. Face that way but keep your gaze wide. Give your eyes twenty minutes to adjust and keep your phone in your pocket. The darker your spot, the more you will see.
About the Leonids
The Leonids are active from most of November. The meteors are debris from comet Tempel-Tuttle (55P) and hit the atmosphere at about 71 km per second. At the peak, a perfectly dark sky with the radiant overhead would show about 15 an hour. Real counts are lower.