Newly Discovered Comets Brighten October Skies

Stargazers are in for a treat this October, as several newly discovered comets are set to grace the night sky, assuming the weather cooperates.

The first comet, designated C/2025 R2 (SWAN), is currently best observed from the Southern Hemisphere. However, observers in the Northern Hemisphere can expect to spot it around mid-month. According to experts from the Association of Amateur Astronomers, this comet will appear in the constellation Ophiuchus. From October 22 to 25, it will be visible below the southern wing of the Cygnus constellation, a region that is relatively high in the evening sky. While it won't be visible to the naked eye, binoculars will be necessary for viewing.

Another comet, C/2025 A6 (Lemmon), is expected to be visible to the naked eye later this month. Currently, it can only be seen through telescopes, but it will become increasingly bright from mid-October onwards. This comet is anticipated to reach its peak brightness between late October and early November. The best time to locate C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is between October 21 and 23, as it will pass underneath the stars Rho and Epsilon in the Boötes constellation.

Additionally, a third comet, C/2025 K1 (ATLAS), is currently visible primarily in the far southern regions of the Northern Hemisphere and across the Southern Hemisphere. This comet will reach its closest point to the Sun, known as perihelion, on October 8, and there are concerns it may disintegrate during this close approach. If C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) survives perihelion, it may become visible in the coming months through telescopes from our latitudes.

All three comets originate from our solar system and were identified this year. C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) was first spotted in early January by the Mount Lemmon Survey in California, which monitors near-Earth objects (NEOs) and potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs). C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) was discovered in May by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), while C/2025 R2 (SWAN) was identified by an amateur astronomer in September using images from the SWAN instrument aboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO).