Night of the Stars
7 August 2026 · movable holiday — Look up and make a wish – tonight the stars are falling just for you!
The Night of the Stars (Nuit des étoiles) is an annual event in France where astronomy clubs, observatories and enthusiasts invite everyone to free public stargazing. It is organised by the French Astronomical Association (AFA) and began in 1991. It takes place over one weekend in early August, close to the peak of the Perseids meteor shower (tiny bits of dust from Comet Swift–Tuttle burning up in the atmosphere and leaving bright trails). People gather in parks, on beaches, hills and squares, look at the Moon, planets and distant nebulae through telescopes, listen to talks and lie on blankets waiting for a shooting star. The date moves because a weekend close to the Perseids' peak is chosen each year. The darker the sky, the more meteors you can see. The Perseids are also nicknamed the “tears of Saint Lawrence”, as they appear around his feast day on 10 August. The best views come far from city lights.
Flying across the sky: An ethereal, bluish-silver figure made of luminous dots and fine lines like a constellation: a small stargazer beside a telescope, drifting across the sky while tiny shooting stars streak past
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