Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: Novosibirsk State University –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
The greatest surge of amateur astronomical activity usually occurs at the end of summer and in autumn, especially in the first half. During this period, the nights are already quite long and dark, compared to summer, but at the same time it is not as cold as in winter. In this review, we will present the most interesting astronomical events in Novosibirsk and its environs that await us in the autumn months.
The most interesting astronomical phenomena of autumn 2025.
September 7/8. Total lunar eclipse. One of the most interesting and anticipated events of autumn 2025, which can be observed by anyone. The maximum phase of the eclipse will be 136%, it will be reached at 1:12 Novosibirsk time. The total phase will last from 0:31 to 1:52, the shadow phase – from 23:27 to 2:56, and the penumbral phase – from 22:28 to 3:55. The time of the eclipse is therefore very favorable for Novosibirsk, during the maximum the Moon will be near the culmination. It should also be noted that the penumbral phases of the lunar eclipse are practically not visible visually, the visible darkening of the lunar disk will be observed from about 23:00 to 3:00 am.
During a lunar eclipse, the Moon passes through the Earth's shadow, and the maximum phase of this eclipse will be quite large, which means that the Moon will plunge deeply into the Earth's shadow and will look quite dark near the maximum. However, the lunar disk will not darken completely, since even being deep in the Earth's shadow, the Moon is illuminated by the refracted light of the Earth's atmosphere from the edges of the dark Earth's disk when viewed from the Moon. Since red light is refracted more strongly, the lunar disk is illuminated mainly by the red component of the solar spectrum, and the Moon during a total eclipse is colored in different shades of red – from dirty orange (copper) to dark red or brown. The intensity of the red color and the brightness of the lunar disk are also affected by the dustiness of the Earth's atmosphere during the eclipse, which is a variable value and depends, for example, on the intensity of volcanic eruptions. For this reason, it is difficult to predict how dark the lunar disk will be during the eclipse, but it is in any case a beautiful phenomenon that does not require any special instruments to observe, although binoculars will better show the boundary of the Earth's shadow and details of the lunar surface during the eclipse.
October 8. Possible surge in Draconid meteor shower activity.
The Draconids are a so-called "flare" meteor shower, whose activity does not occur every year, but, as a rule, near the perihelion of its parent comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner. During flares, activity can also vary greatly – from relatively low to meteor storms, which the Draconids produced, for example, in 1933 and 1946. Of the recent manifestations of activity, 2011, 2012 and 2018 should be noted, when activity reached hundreds of meteors per hour.
In 2025, comet 21P passes its next perihelion, and, as calculations show, the Earth will collide with fairly fresh cometary material ejected in 2012. In this regard, we can expect a surge in meteor activity, the calculated maximum of which falls at 22:07 Novosibirsk time. The intensity of the surge is unlikely to be stormy, since the Earth should collide with a cloud of particles, the sizes of which are very small. Nevertheless, at the maximum, we can expect quite pronounced activity at the level of tens, and if we are lucky, hundreds of meteors per hour.
The radiant of the shower is in the constellation of Draco, in the evening it is located high above the horizon, so for Novosibirsk the time of the maximum is very favorable. During the outburst, there will be a bright Moon in the sky, which will worsen the conditions for its observation and reduce the number of visible meteors. However, any manifestation of Draconid activity is undoubtedly a unique event and is recommended for observation.
September 13. Moon Occultation of the Pleiades
The series of occultations of the very beautiful star cluster Pleiades by the Earth's satellite Moon continues, which occurs once every 18 years. The period of 18 years is equal to the duration of the lunar saros (draconic period), which is caused by the precession of the lunar orbit. In other words, this is the period of precession of the orbit of the Moon. The Pleiades cluster is located in the sky slightly above the ecliptic, but due to the precession and the tilt of the lunar orbit of about 5 degrees, the Moon in its visible movement across the sky periodically (every 18 years) "reaches" the Pleiades and gives a series of occultations of the cluster.
At the latitude of Novosibirsk, the current series of occultations began in mid-2024 and will end in March 2028. Occultations occur approximately once a month (more precisely, every 29 days, which corresponds to the sidereal period of the Moon). However, occultations occur at different times of the day and not all of them are visible in Novosibirsk.
To observe this occultation (which is essentially a series of occultations of the Pleiades cluster stars by the Moon), you need to use binoculars or a telescope. In its orbit around the Earth, the Moon will pass in front of the Pleiades stars and will block them from the Earth observer for a while. Using binoculars or a telescope, you will be able to see the Moon gradually approaching the various stars of the cluster, then at some point they disappear behind the lunar disk, and after a while they reappear on the other side.
This occultation will occur on the night of September 12/13, when the Moon will be located high above the horizon, which, combined with a phase of about 67%, creates very good conditions for observations with a telescope or binoculars. However, it is better to use a tripod or astronomical mount to stabilize the image.
Here are the parameters of coverage of the brightest stars of the Pleiades for Novosibirsk:
Electra. Start – 03:42:50, altitude 52°, end – 04:13:57, altitude 55°.
Taygete. Start – 03:50:01, altitude 53°, end – 04:57:24, altitude 58°.
Maya. Start at 04:02:40, altitude 54°, end at 05:08:45, altitude 59°.
November 6. Moon occultation of the Pleiades
The next occultation of the Pleiades by the Moon, visible in Novosibirsk, will occur on November 6. Unlike the September event, it will occur in the evening, at a slightly lower, but still good height above the horizon, although at a fuller phase of the Moon.
Here are the parameters of coverage of the brightest stars of the Pleiades for Novosibirsk:
Electra. Starts at 21:00:44, altitude 27°, ends at 21:48:41, altitude 34°.
Merope. Starts at 21:24:42, altitude 30°, ends at 22:14:21, altitude 37°.
Alcyone. Starts at 21:52:36, altitude 34°, ends at 22:48:16, altitude 42°.
Atlas. Start at 22:46:44, altitude 41°, end at 23:04:31, altitude 44°.
Meteor showers
October 21. Orionid meteor shower peaks. This meteor shower with a radiant in the constellation Orion originates from comet 1P/Halley, its maximum intensity is about 20-30 meteors per hour, and the meteors themselves are very fast. The shower's radiant rises quite high in the second half of the night, and the maximum itself is quite wide, activity near the maximum level can remain for several days around October 21.
November 17. Peak of the Leonid meteor shower. This shower, with a radiant in the constellation Leo, shows a normal annual activity of about 10-15 meteors per hour, but is known for its periodic increases in activity in the years around the perihelion of its parent comet 55P/Swift-Tuttle. No increased activity is predicted for the current year. The radiant of this shower also rises high in the sky in the second half of the night and produces fast meteors.
Comets
C/2025 A6 Lemmon. This is currently the brightest comet expected for the fall of 2025, with its brightness expected to reach approximately magnitude 6 in October-November. This is still not enough for visual observations, but at this time the comet should be clearly visible in amateur telescopes and even binoculars.
The comet will be visible in the mornings in the second half of the night, reaching a good height of 40-45° in the morning, then for about a week from October 15 to 22 it will move from the morning part of the sky to the evening part, and then it will be visible in the evenings until about mid-November. At the end of October and the beginning of November (just around the maximum brightness) visibility will be good, and then the comet will begin to decrease more and more, until it finally becomes invisible.
C/2025 K1 ATLAS. This comet will be a bit dimmer, expected to be around magnitude 9 or 10 in October-November. However, it will be a pretty good target for amateur telescopes, but it is unlikely to be visible in binoculars.
The comet will be visible low above the horizon in the mornings in the last days of October and early November, and then, after the passage of the Moon, from mid to late November (and especially in the third ten days of November) it will be visible high in the sky for most of the night, although it will still be better visible in the second half of the night, since its culmination time will fall in the second half of the night.
Connections
September 20. Conjunction of Venus and Regulus. On the morning of September 20, the brightest planet in the sky will be 0.6° from the 1st magnitude star Regulus. This separation is slightly larger than the apparent size of the lunar disk. In the sky, this conjunction will look like two bright stars next to each other above the eastern horizon. At this time, a very narrow crescent of the waning Moon will be below them. The best time for observation is around 6 a.m.
November 13. Conjunction of the Moon and Regulus. Also quite a close conjunction, on the morning of November 13, under the waning crescent of the Moon, there will be a fairly bright star Regulus, the visual separation of which from the nearest edge of the lunar disk will be only 0.2°. The best observation period is from about 6 to 7 am.
In the photo: comet C/2025 K1 ATLAS, which was discovered in May 2025. The comet was photographed on August 26 through a telescope with a focal length of 854 mm, approximately 70 km from Novosibirsk along the Ordynskaya highway. In the summer, it was practically inaccessible for visual observation at the latitude of Novosibirsk, and for photography – from about July 20 until the end of August. It will pass the closest point to the Sun in its orbit (perihelion) on October 8, but at this time it will be behind the Sun from the point of view of an observer on Earth. And now it is practically invisible, and it will become visible again at the end of October, when it comes out from behind the Sun after perihelion and gains sufficient elongation (visual angular separation from the Sun).
We invite students of the NSU SUNC to the special course "Observational Astronomy at the NSU Vega Observatory. All questions can be asked by mail:Nesterenko@post. NSU.ru.
Explanation: Usually, various astronomical phenomena can be observed over a more or less large area, and depending on what event we are talking about, they can be visible, for example, in different regions of Siberia or Russia as a whole, or in the entire northern or eastern hemisphere, or even throughout the world. This review provides information about what remarkable, unusual and interesting astronomical phenomena can be observed in Novosibirsk and its environs in the fall of 2025.
It may well turn out that Novosibirsk will not be the optimal place for observing any of the phenomena indicated in the review, and in other points on our planet this phenomenon will be better visible, but the circumstances of visibility are given specifically for Novosibirsk.
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
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