Saturn Dazzles, New Comet Rises, and Auroras Loom: Skywatch Alert for Sept 24

Saturn at Peak Brightness: Fresh off its opposition on September 21, Saturn is currently at its closest and brightest of the year, shining prominently all night long ^[1]. Even a small telescope will reveal its famous rings ^[2].
New “Once-in-a-Lifetime” Comet: A newly discovered comet – C/2025 R2 (SWAN) – has entered the evening sky. It sports a long tail and has brightened to about magnitude 7, just shy of naked-eye visibility ^[3]. Under dark skies, binoculars can pick it up now, especially in the Southern Hemisphere ^[4].
No Major Meteor Shower (But Look Up Anyway): No big meteor shower peaks on these nights, but you might still catch a few Southern Taurid meteors (from Comet Encke’s debris) starting to trickle in ^[5]. Earlier this month the rare Chi Cygnid shower flared up, and a few of those ultra-slow “shooting stars” could still appear in the early evenings ^[6]. In general, expect around 10 random meteors per hour before dawn under dark skies ^[7], thanks to sporadic background activity. Luckily, the Moon is just a thin crescent setting early, leaving most of the night dark for meteor-spotting.
Aurora Watch at Equinox: With the autumnal equinox just passed on September 22, Earth’s magnetic field is more susceptible to solar wind disturbances. Researchers note that around equinox, “even a gentle gust of solar wind can breach our planet’s magnetic defenses,” a phenomenon called the Russell–McPherron effect ^[8]. While the official geomagnetic forecast calls for only minor activity (max Kp ~4, below storm levels) ^[9], high-latitude skywatchers should still be alert for possible Aurora Borealis displays if any solar wind stream arrives.
Satellites and Space Action in the Skies: The International Space Station (ISS) is making a series of bright evening passes this week, visible after sunset as a swift, star-like light gliding west-to-east ^[10]. (It’s often the brightest object in the night sky after the Moon!) In addition, SpaceX just launched a Falcon 9 rocket on the morning of Sept. 24 carrying NASA and NOAA’s latest space weather observatory missions ^[11]. Frequent SpaceX Starlink launches are also ongoing – one pre-dawn launch this week created a glowing “space jellyfish” plume in the sunrise sky ^[12]. And here’s a reminder that not every fireball is natural: on Sept. 19, a slow, brilliant streak over India turned out to be a reentering Chinese rocket stage, breaking apart as it burned up ^[13].

Saturn Steals the Show

If you step outside on these late-September nights, Saturn immediately grabs your attention. The ringed planet reached opposition (when Earth passed directly between Saturn and the Sun) on September 21, and it remains exceptionally bright and gorgeous in the sky ^[14]. At opposition Saturn is closest to Earth for the year, so it shines at maximum brilliance and is visible all night, rising around sunset and setting near dawn. “Saturn will be at its closest and brightest all year!” as NASA explains ^[15] – truly the best time to enjoy this gas giant.

Look for Saturn low in the east after nightfall; it climbs higher through the evening and appears in the western sky by early morning ^[16]. To the naked eye it gleams as a steady, pale yellow “star,” but even a modest backyard telescope can reveal Saturn’s rings as well as a few of its moons ^[17]. If you’ve never seen the rings with your own eyes, now is the perfect opportunity. Saturn’s distinctive rings are currently tilted at an angle that still offers a good view (they will gradually turn edge-on in coming years). Don’t miss this “out-of-this-world performance” by Saturn, as NASA calls it ^[18].

And Saturn isn’t alone – Jupiter and Venus are also gracing the skies, albeit at different times. In the early morning before dawn, brilliant Venus and bright Jupiter can be seen low in the eastern sky ^[19]. Venus is the dazzle of dawn (as the “Morning Star”), while Jupiter appears higher and slightly dimmer than Venus. The two planets had a close meet-up recently and are now slowly drifting apart. By contrast, Mars is very faint and hugging the horizon at dusk (having gone behind the Sun earlier), so it’s not prominent right now. Another planet is at opposition this week too: distant Neptune reached opposition on September 23 ^[20]. Neptune will be the brightest it gets (technically visible with binoculars or a telescope), but “it will still be relatively dim and difficult to see” without decent equipment ^[21]. So unless you’re an avid telescope user hunting Neptune’s tiny bluish disc, you can skip straight to Saturn – the true star of the September night.

Even the Moon is cooperating for skywatchers. We just had a New Moon on Sept. 21, so on the 24th–25th the Moon is a young waxing crescent, only about 5–10% illuminated ^[22]. You might catch the slim crescent Moon low in the west for a short time after sunset (a delicate sight with earthshine on the dark portion). But it sets quickly, meaning most of the night will be moonless and dark – ideal for observing faint objects like meteors, comets, and the Milky Way. So enjoy the darkness while it lasts; the Moon will return to brighten the night sky in a week or so.

A New Comet Graces the Evening Sky

Skywatchers have an exciting new target: Comet C/2025 R2 (SWAN), a freshly discovered comet that is currently trekking through the evening twilight. Astronomers first spotted this visitor in early September using data from the SOHO space observatory’s SWAN camera. On September 10, amateur comet-hunter Vladimir Bezugly noticed a moving “bright blob” in SWAN images near the Sun – a new comet was confirmed and officially designated C/2025 R2 ^[23] ^[24]. “In my memory, this is one of the brightest comet discoveries ever made on SWAN imagery,” noted Bezugly, who identified the comet in the SOHO data ^[25].

Early reports show Comet SWAN sporting a long, wispy tail and a condensed head (coma). As of this week, the comet has brightened to around magnitude +7 ^[26]. While that’s not quite bright enough to see with the naked eye (under pristine dark skies, the limit is about magnitude 6 to 6.5), it is within reach of ordinary binoculars ^[27]. In fact, observers with 50mm or larger binoculars have already been picking it up as a small fuzzy star with a faint tail a few degrees long ^[28]. Long-exposure photographs reveal far more detail, but it’s exciting that a comet is on the threshold of naked-eye visibility.

When and where to look? Right now (Sept 24–25), Comet SWAN is visible shortly after sunset, very low in the western sky. It’s currently creeping out of the Sun’s glare, which means each day it should become a little easier to observe. Southern Hemisphere stargazers have the best vantage at the moment ^[29] – the comet is higher in the sky from southerly latitudes. Observers in the Northern Hemisphere face a bit more of a challenge: autumn evenings in the north have a steep angle of the ecliptic, so anything near the sunset point (like this comet) stays low and sets soon after the Sun ^[30]. Essentially, from mid-northern latitudes the comet is buried in twilight for now, visible only briefly with optical aid. Patience is key; as we move toward October, the comet’s position in the sky will improve for northern viewers.

According to EarthSky, “Autumn skies in the Northern Hemisphere aren’t the best for seeing objects in the western evening twilight. But this comet has been, and still is, getting easier to see.” The next good opportunity may come around October 2, when Comet SWAN will be passing near a bright star (Zubenelgenubi in Libra) as a handy reference point ^[31]. The comet’s closest approach to Earth will be later in October (around Oct. 19 at about 39 million km distance ^[32]), and experts predict it could hover around magnitude 6 in mid-October ^[33] ^[34]. That’s right on the cusp of visibility without aid – meaning under dark skies it might become just barely discernible to the eye, and certainly an easy binocular object. There is no guarantee it will get much brighter (comet brightness is notoriously hard to predict), but the consensus is that Comet SWAN will remain around mag 6–7 through October ^[35]. So don’t expect a Great Comet spectacle, but do take the chance to catch this “once-in-a-lifetime” visitor while it’s here (its orbit may exceed a thousand years, meaning it won’t return in our lifetimes) ^[36].

To find Comet C/2025 R2, first find a viewing spot with a clear view of the west-southwestern horizon at dusk. About 30–60 minutes after sunset, scan just above the horizon in that direction with binoculars. The comet lies in the constellation Virgo moving into Libra, not far from where the Sun set. It will appear as a small, fuzzy star. If you have a star chart or astronomy app, look for Libra’s brightest star Zubenelgenubi; the comet will be near that star around early October ^[37]. Observers in the Southern Hemisphere have reported sightings of Comet SWAN already with binoculars and small telescopes, describing it as having a noticeable tail. If you don’t see it right away, don’t be discouraged – as the nights progress, the comet will climb a bit higher and shift to setting later after the Sun, improving visibility. And if you miss it this week, you’ll get another chance in the first half of October as it traverses the evening sky (moving through Libra into Scorpius). For now, just knowing a new comet is out there – a “true once-in-a-lifetime visitor” to our skies ^[38] – makes the twilight scan exciting.

Shooting Stars: What to Expect from Meteors

Late September is a relatively quiet period for meteor showers, but that doesn’t mean the night sky will be completely devoid of shooting stars. In fact, on any given night, sporadic meteors (random background meteors not associated with a major shower) can produce a handful of visible streaks each hour. According to the International Meteor Organization, observers under dark rural skies at mid-northern latitudes might catch around 10 meteors per hour before dawn even when no major shower is active ^[39]. These are the random “natural fireworks” from leftover cometary dust grains hitting Earth’s atmosphere. So if you find yourself gazing up at the stars before dawn, keep watching – you may see a few wishes streak by.

No prominent annual meteor shower peaks on September 24–25. The famous summer Perseids have long ended (they peaked in August), and the next big shower, the Orionids, won’t peak until late October. However, there are a couple of minor sources of meteors worth noting:

The Southern Taurids are just beginning to activate around September 23. This is a sprawling, long-duration meteor stream from Comet 2P/Encke. It’s not a sharp “shower” but rather a drizzle of slow-moving meteors that lasts for weeks. Early Southern Taurid activity (sometimes called the October Arietids) runs from now through mid-October, ramping up toward a modest peak around Oct. 14 ^[40]. During these late September nights, you might spot a few Taurid meteors per hour at best (perhaps ~3 per hour under ideal conditions) ^[41]. Taurid meteors are known for being slow and often bright. Occasionally, the Taurids produce spectacular fireballs (nicknamed “Halloween fireballs” in some years), but those typically occur closer to the October/November peak. For now, expect the odd slow fireball emanating from the south/southwestern sky late at night – a telltale sign of the Taurid stream ^[42].
Earlier this month, a rare meteor shower called the Chi Cygnids drew attention. First identified only in 2015, the Chi Cygnid shower appears to have outbursts in a 5-year cycle ^[43]. In mid-September 2025, around the 13th–15th, skywatchers noted an uptick in meteors radiating from the constellation Cygnus (overhead in the evening for Northern Hemisphere). The Chi Cygnids are a “modest” shower – not very many meteors, but the ones that do appear move extremely slowly across the sky ^[44] ^[45]. During its peak this year, maybe up to a couple dozen per hour were observed under good conditions. By the nights of Sept 24–25, the Chi Cygnid activity is petering out – “the last of any chi Cygnids…expected early this week” per meteor experts ^[46]. Still, it’s worth mentioning because if you see a very slow meteor in the evening (almost floating across the sky), it could be a leftover Chi Cygnid. These meteors radiate from near Cygnus (high in the northern sky in the evening). The slowness is a clue – Chi Cygnid meteors crawl at about 15 km/s, among the slowest of any shower ^[47]. For comparison, Perseids blaze in at ~60 km/s. So keep an eye out for any oddly slow-moving “shooting star” after dusk; you might have caught a rare one!

Overall, this week is a meteor-watcher’s appetizer rather than the main course. The moonless sky (thanks to the tiny crescent Moon setting early) gives ideal darkness for spotting any subtle streaks. Find a spot away from city lights, recline in a lawn chair, and let your eyes adjust. You won’t see meteors constantly, but over an hour or two, chances are you’ll catch a few zipping overhead. And remember, a brilliant fireball can surprise at any time, even outside of a major shower. In fact, not all fireballs are natural: just a few days ago, on September 19, residents in northern India witnessed a spectacular slow-moving fireball that broke into fragments – initially thought to be a meteor, it was later confirmed to be a reentering piece of space junk (a Chinese rocket stage) burning up ^[48]. The sky can deliver unexpected shows!

Pro tip: With Saturn bright, this is also a great time to scan for the Milky Way band and deep-sky objects once the evening crescent Moon sets. The lack of moonlight means faint glows pop out. After Saturn rises, you can find the Milky Way running from the south (Sagittarius and Scorpius near the horizon) upward through Aquila and Cygnus overhead, and toward Cassiopeia in the north. If you’re away from light pollution, the Milky Way looks like a cloudy river of stars. It’s a gorgeous backdrop for any meteor or satellite that streaks by.

Aurora Outlook: Equinox Hopes and Solar Activity

We are near the autumnal equinox (which occurred on Sept. 22), a time of year that is well-known among aurora enthusiasts. Historically, geomagnetic activity tends to peak around the equinoxes – a phenomenon partly explained by the aforementioned Russell–McPherron effect. Essentially, Earth’s tilt and magnetic orientation in spring and fall allow the solar wind to more easily interact with our magnetosphere ^[49]. As a result, even a relatively minor solar outflow can spark auroras. As Spaceweather.com put it, “During the weeks around equinoxes, fissures form in Earth’s magnetosphere. Solar wind can pour through the gaps to fuel bright displays of Arctic lights… Even a gentle gust of solar wind can breach our planet’s magnetic defenses” ^[50]. In other words, this time of year the Aurora Borealis (and Australis, in the Southern Hemisphere) can show up with less provocation than usual.

So, what’s the current aurora forecast? The good news is that we are near the peak of Solar Cycle 25, and the Sun has been active in 2025. The less-good news (for aurora-chasers) is that no major solar storms are predicted specifically for the nights of Sept 24–25. According to NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, the geomagnetic activity is expected to remain below storm levels in this period, with the planetary Kp index predicted to top out around 4 ^[51]. (For reference, a Kp of 5 is a minor G1 geomagnetic storm, and Kp 4 is just a notch below that.) In practical terms, a Kp 4 might produce auroras visible only at high latitudes – e.g. far-northern parts of Canada, Scandinavia, Alaska, maybe Scotland – and even there it would likely be modest. So we are not anticipating a widespread aurora outbreak or anything like the great displays earlier this year.

However, with the equinox effect in play, it’s not impossible for a surprise auroral substorm to flare up if the solar wind conditions are just right. There are a couple of coronal holes (open magnetic regions on the Sun) that could send some enhanced solar wind our way. If you live in a high-latitude region, it’s worth keeping an eye on the northern sky late at night for any faint green glows or auroral arcs. Even a quiet sky can suddenly “activate” around local midnight with shimmering curtains of light if a magnetic connection happens. Polar observers (far north in Europe, Asia, or North America) stand the best chance. For those of us at mid-latitudes (e.g. continental US, central Europe), auroras will probably remain below the horizon this week unless a stronger disturbance arrives than forecast.

One other atmospheric light phenomenon to mention: around the equinox, observers at mid-northern latitudes can sometimes see the zodiacal light in the predawn sky. This is a cone of faint glow caused by sunlight reflecting off interplanetary dust in the plane of the Solar System. In late September, before morning twilight (about 1.5–2 hours before sunrise), you might see this misty pyramid of light rising from the eastern horizon, leaning along the Zodiac. It’s often called the “false dawn.” EarthSky notes that the weeks around the September equinox are a good time for Northern Hemisphere observers to look for the zodiacal light before morning twilight (and for Southern Hemisphere folks to look for it in the evening after dusk) ^[52]. You’ll need very dark skies (no light pollution, no Moon) and a clear view. If you mistake it for the lights of a distant city or the first hint of dawn, that’s normal – it’s a subtle brightness. But it’s actually sunlight shining through the dust cloud that spans the inner Solar System. This is a minor treat for the truly dedicated sky nerds, but worth attempting on these moonless mornings!

Finally, a quick note: The beautiful noctilucent clouds (NLCs), those electric-blue night shining clouds in the high atmosphere, are out of season now. NLCs appear in summer at high latitudes (roughly late May through July in the Northern Hemisphere) ^[53]. By late September, the Northern Hemisphere NLC season has closed, and the Southern Hemisphere’s won’t start until November/December. So you won’t be seeing noctilucent clouds this week. But the night sky itself will provide plenty of illumination – from stars, planets, and maybe a dash of aurora green – to keep things interesting.

Space Station, Satellites, and Rocket Action

While you’re out under the stars on Sept 24–25, don’t forget to look for human-made celestial movers like the International Space Station and other satellites. Right now, the ISS is making evening appearances for many observers. In fact, over Europe (including Poland and the UK) and much of the northern U.S., the ISS is in a cycle of spectacular evening passes through the end of September ^[54]. This means shortly after sunset, on clear nights, you can see the space station sail across the sky. The ISS looks like a very bright, steady star moving swiftly from west to east. It typically appears low on the western horizon, rises to some maximum altitude, then fades into Earth’s shadow as it goes eastward. Each pass lasts a few minutes. The station is bright – often outshining any star or planet in the sky (aside from Venus or the Moon). There’s no mistaking it: it doesn’t blink (like planes do) and it moves much faster than an airplane. As Britain’s astronomy society notes, “The International Space Station is one of the brightest objects in the sky… making a spectacular series of evening passes” this month ^[55] ^[56].

To know when exactly the ISS will pass over your location, you can use NASA’s “Spot the Station” website or various smartphone apps. For example, in Warsaw one of the bright passes this week occurs around 7:50 PM local time (just an example – do check for your precise area!). During that pass the ISS will climb about halfway up the southern sky. These passes are great opportunities to wave to the seven astronauts currently aboard, or to snap a photo as the station streaks above a local landmark. If you’ve never tracked the ISS, give it a try – it’s quite awe-inspiring to see this football-field-sized spacecraft silently crossing overhead, knowing there are humans living onboard 400 km above us.

Beyond the ISS, you might catch other satellites. Starlink satellites (the SpaceX internet constellation) are numerous and often visible. Shortly after a launch, they appear as a noticeable “train” of lights following each other. SpaceX did a Starlink launch just a few days ago (on Sept. 21 from Florida), which was timed near dawn. Viewers along the U.S. East Coast witnessed a stunning effect: the rocket’s upper stage plume was illuminated by the rising sun, creating a glowing halo in the sky – a so-called “jellyfish effect” ^[57]. If you see a strange comet-like cloud in pre-sunrise or post-sunset skies, it could be a rocket exhaust plume from a recent launch. For instance, another Starlink launch is planned around Sept. 25, which, if occurring at predawn hours, might produce a similar eerie glow in the sky for early risers in the region.

In terms of scheduled space events, the big news is that NASA and SpaceX launched a space weather mission on the morning of Sept. 24. At 7:30 a.m. EDT, a Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Kennedy Space Center carrying NASA’s IMAP probe (a mission to map the heliosphere) along with NOAA’s new Space Weather Follow-On L1 observatory (SWFO-L1) and a small solar science observatory named after astrophysicist George Carruthers ^[58]. This rideshare launch is headed to the Sun-Earth L1 point, about 1.5 million km from Earth, where the spacecraft will monitor the solar wind and sun’s activity. The launch was successful and by evening of the 24th, ground controllers confirmed all three spacecraft were healthy ^[59]. While you won’t see these spacecraft (they are on their way to deep space), it’s neat to know that right now a new mission is en route to watch the Sun – which in turn will help give us advance warning of solar storms that produce auroras. In essence, the Sept. 24 launch will improve future aurora forecasts.

SpaceX, meanwhile, has been busy with its Starlink deployment launches from both Florida and California this month. In fact, 2025 has seen a very high cadence of Falcon 9 flights – more than 100 launches already ^[60]. Each launch deploys dozens of Starlink mini-satellites. If you are out in a dark area, you might notice occasional satellites flaring or gliding overhead. Starlinks can sometimes cause brief glints as they catch sunlight. Also, keep an eye out for any unusual groupings of lights moving in a line – that could be a recent Starlink batch. These tend to be visible a day or two after launch, then spread out.

Finally, a bit of space debris awareness. We mentioned earlier the dramatic reentry over India on Sept. 19 ^[61]. That event was caused by an uncontrolled rocket stage from a Chinese launch, which after about a year in orbit, reentered the atmosphere. It produced a slow fireball that many thought was a meteor at first. The key difference was its speed (much slower than a typical meteor) and fragmentation into multiple pieces, which is characteristic of man-made objects burning up ^[62] ^[63]. These reentries happen somewhere on Earth a few times a month, but it’s rare for them to be observed over populated areas. It was a reminder that the night sky is now filled not just with natural wonders but also with human-made objects. While the odds of seeing a reentry fireball on any given night are extremely low, it’s fascinating that it can happen. (For the curious: the object was identified as a Long March 3B rocket body from a 2024 launch ^[64].)

In summary, the nights of September 24–25, 2025 offer a rich menu of skywatching delights. From a show-stopping Saturn at the height of its glory, to the intrigue of a new comet emerging from twilight, to the subtle dances of meteors and the potential for auroral glows, there’s something for everyone. Even the human presence in space makes itself known with space station flyovers and rocket launches leaving their fingerprints in the sky. It’s a great time to gather friends or family, step outside, and look up. Clear skies!

Sources: Saturn opposition and equinox events ^[65] ^[66]; comet SWAN discovery and visibility ^[67] ^[68] ^[69]; meteor activity outlook from IMO/AMS ^[70] ^[71] ^[72]; Russell-McPherron equinox aurora effect ^[73]; NOAA geomagnetic forecast ^[74]; ISS visibility schedule ^[75]; SpaceX launch and “jellyfish” phenomenon ^[76]; reentry of CZ-3B rocket over India ^[77]; NASA/SpaceX mission launch news ^[78]. Each hyperlink provides additional details and verification for the information above. Enjoy the celestial show!