Supermoon and Quadrantid meteor shower to light up night sky

The night sky is set to offer a celestial spectacle as the year's first supermoon coincides with the Quadrantid meteor shower.

The first supermoon of 2026 will appear on Saturday night. A supermoon refers to a full moon that occurs near perigee, the point at which the moon is closest to Earth in its elliptical orbit. When this happens, the moon appears noticeably larger and brighter than usual.

Liu Zhongli, a member of the Chinese Astronomical Society and an astronomy science communicator at the Tianjin Science and Technology Museum, said supermoons are not rare. There were three in 2025, while 2026 will see two, on January 3 and December 24. The December supermoon will be the largest full moon of the year.

The Quadrantid meteor shower, alongside the Perseids in August and the Geminids in December, is regarded as one of the three major meteor showers in the Northern Hemisphere. Its active period runs from December 28 to January 12 each year, with peak activity around January 4.

Quadrantid meteors are known for their moderate speed and high brightness, often producing striking fireballs. Their zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) typically remains around 100 and can occasionally reach 200 or higher. However, the peak lasts only a short time, usually no more than a few hours, while meteor activity before and after the maximum is relatively low. In some cases, peak activity may even occur during daylight hours.