Topline<\/p>\n
After a quiet 2025 for comets, skywatchers may soon get a very special naked-eye spectacle in the shape of Comet Lemmon (C\/2025 A6). Discovered in January, the green comet has brightened faster than predicted in recent weeks and now looks set to be visible from dark rural skies during October 2025. It could be at its brightest during the peak of the annual Orionid meteor shower.<\/p>\n
The comet was discovered on August 12, 2023 by Hideo Nishimura during 30-second exposures with a standard digital camera. Taken in Nerja, M\u00e1laga. Andalusia. South of Spain.<\/p>\n
gettyKey Facts<\/p>\n
Comet Lemmon was discovered on Jan. 3, 2025, by the Mount Lemmon Survey in Arizona. It was initially thought to be an asteroid.<\/p>\n
It last visited the inner solar system 1,396 years ago \u2014 in the seventh century \u2014 with astronomers calculating that it will return in the year 3421, making it a once-in-a-lifetime comet.<\/p>\n
By mid-October, it will be close to the Big Dipper in the northern night sky. It could shine as brightly as 5th magnitude, making it visible to the naked eye from dark rural skies.<\/p>\n
Since Comet Lemmon will be visible in a part of the northern sky that’s circumpolar, it will be visible in both morning and evening skies by mid-to-late October as seen from the Northern Hemisphere.<\/p>\n
It will get closest to Earth \u2014 and, therefore, shine brightest \u2014 on Oct. 21, getting closest to the sun on Nov. 8. Comet Lemmon may be visible during that entire time.<\/p>\n
How Bright Will Comet Lemmon Get?<\/p>\n
Forecasts for Comet Lemmon\u2019s brightness have recently changed dramatically. Early predictions placed it at around 10th magnitude in October, but according to Bob King at Sky & Telescope<\/a>, recent observations suggest it could peak at magnitude 4.5 around Oct. 21 \u2014 visible to the naked eye from dark skies and easy in binoculars. However, comets behave erratically and it could become brighter or fainter than currently predicted. <\/p>\n During its closest pass to Earth, it will be at a distance of 56 million miles from Earth \u2014 the equivalent of about 60% of the distance between Earth and the sun. <\/p>\n A Comet, \u2018shooting Stars\u2019 And Aurora? <\/p>\n If Comet Lemmon brightens, it’s sure to be widely observed by skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere. Its closest approach to Earth on Oct. 21 coincides not only with a new moon, but also with the peak of the Orionid meteor shower, when about 20 “shooting stars” per hour are expected. October is also a peak month for displays of the Northern Lights; if geomagnetic activity is high, some observers at northern latitudes may also see the comet amid auroras. It will be a fast-moving comet, so its position in the night sky will change dramatically from night to night. <\/p>\n Further ReadingForbesComplete Guide To September\u2019s Solar And Lunar EclipsesBy Jamie Carter<\/a>ForbesIn Photos: A \u2018Blood Moon\u2019 Total Lunar Eclipse Sets Up A Solar EclipseBy Jamie Carter<\/a>ForbesWhen To See The Next \u2018Blood Moon\u2019 Eclipse In North AmericaBy Jamie Carter<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Topline After a quiet 2025 for comets, skywatchers may soon get a very special naked-eye spectacle in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7415,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[8569,8570,8572,8571,8575,8577,85,46,8573,8574,125,8576],"class_list":{"0":"post-7414","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-c-2025-a6","9":"tag-comet","10":"tag-comet-lemmon","11":"tag-comet-lemmon-c-2025-a6","12":"tag-comet-of-the-year","13":"tag-green-comet","14":"tag-il","15":"tag-israel","16":"tag-naked-eye-comet","17":"tag-new-comet","18":"tag-technology","19":"tag-where-is-the-comet"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7414"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7414\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}