The New Year 2025 will be quite rich in various astronomical events. In particular, we will see the long-awaited Mars opposition and the largest elongations of Venus, several interesting combinations of planets, a total lunar eclipse and spectacular meteor streams. Here we have collected all the most interesting things so that you can choose what you like.
Solar and lunar eclipses
There will be a total of four eclipses this year: two partial solar and two total lunar eclipses. As always, they will occur in pairs about a fortnight apart. The conditions for observing eclipses vary greatly.
The first total lunar eclipse will take place on 14 March. It will be ideal for observation in North America and on the west coast of South America. But in Europe, particularly in Ukraine, it will be possible to see only the entrance to the penumbral phase, closer to the morning.
On 29 March, observers in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada will be able to see a partial solar eclipse just after sunrise. And in northwestern Ukraine, it will be possible to see only how the Moon hid a tiny edge of the Sun – less than 3 percent.
The lunar eclipse on 7 September will be much more successful for Ukraine: the penumbral phase will begin before the Moon rises, and at 6:30 p.m. UTC (1:30 p.m. UTC-5) when it will already be above the horizon), our satellite will completely hide in the Earth’s shadow and will remain in it until 7:52 p.m. UTC (2:52 p.m. UTC-5). The Blood Moon will be best observed in the countries of Asia, east of Africa, and west of Australia. North and South America will be out of luck this time.
The final eclipse of the year – again a partial solar eclipse – will take place on 21 September and will be available exclusively from Antarctica and New Zealand.
Meteor showers
Contrary to popular belief that the time of meteor showers is mid-August, 110 meteor showers have been confirmed so far. However, the vast majority of them are very weak, and you’re unlikely to see more than 1-2 meteors per night. We’ve highlighted the 7 most powerful annual meteor showers, and you can find a list of them below, along with their activity period, peak time, peak ZHR and moon phase.
Quadrantids – from 28 December to 12 January, maximum 3-4 January, ZHR = 80, waxing Moon 14%, so it will not interfere with observations.
Lyrids – from 14 to 30 April, maximum 22 April, ZHR = 18, waning Moon 35%, so the entire first half of the night observations will be quite productive.
Eta Aquariids – from 19 April to 28 May, maximum on 6 May, ZHR = 50, the stream is observed closer to the morning when the 67% illuminated Moon is already below the horizon.
Southern Delta Aquariids – from 12 July to 23 August, maximum 31 July, ZHR = 25, waxing Moon 38% will not interfere with observations in the second half of the night.
Perseids – from 17 July to 24 August, maximum 12 August, ZHR = 100, waning Moon 88% will significantly reduce the number of meteors that can be seen.
Orionids – from 2 October to 7 November, maximum 21 October, ZHR = 20, the Moon will be in the New Moon phase, creating ideal conditions.
Geminids – from 4 to 20 December, max 14 December, ZHR = 150, waning Moon 27% will not prevent you from enjoying this stream.
Comets
The year 2025 will not be rich in bright comets. The vast majority of them will be accessible only to large amateur telescopes and will mainly be of interest only to dedicated scientists.
But one comet we do look forward to – C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), which on 13 January will approach the Sun at a minimum distance and will be almost as bright as Venus. This “tail” belongs to the family of near-solar comets and at perihelion will be literally 13.3 million kilometers from the Sun’s photosphere. But, judging by its parameters, this distance should be safe for her.
The debate continues in scientific circles as to whether the comet is dynamically new or has already once approached the Sun thousands of years ago. Right now, it is only accessible to the Southern Hemisphere, but observers have noted that it is rapidly increasing in brightness and is behaving quietly – showing no sudden outbursts. This may indeed indicate that it has already passed the Sun’s extreme test. Unfortunately, once it reaches its maximum brightness, C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), although it will be better located for residents of the Northern Hemisphere, will still be too close to our star to be seen except for a glimpse.
The opposition and the largest elongations
Two pleasant events await us in January: Venus will be at its greatest eastern elongation on the 10th, 47° from the Sun, and Mars will be in opposition on the 16th. This is the best time to observe the Red Planet throughout the night. Another maximum elongation of Venus, this time to the west, awaits us on 1 June, so the spring-summer sky will be decorated with a bright Morning Star.
8 March will mark the best evening visibility of Mercury for the year (the largest western elongation), and 19 August and 7 December will be the most successful for morning observations of the closest planet to the Sun.
As for the gas giants, their oppositions are expected in the second half of the year: Saturn on 21 September, Neptune on 23 September and Uranus on 21 November. The only outer planet whose opposition will not take place in 2025 is Jupiter, and the last time it happened was in 2013. However, it will be observed at the very beginning of 2026 – January 10, so the end of 2025 will be very favorable for observations of the largest planet in the solar system.
For those who have always dreamed of seeing an asteroid with their own eyes – on 2 May, the brightest asteroid Vesta will be in opposition, reaching 5.5 star magnitude at that time. This means that under conditions of perfect skies and keen eyesight, it will be visible to the naked eye. You can also look out for the oppositions of Pallas (10 August) and Ceres (10 October), but in these cases, you will need binoculars or a telescope.
Interesting configurations of the planets and the Moon
As early as 4 January, residents of Ukraine, the whole of Europe and the south of South America will be lucky enough to observe a rare phenomenon – Saturn’s coverage by the Moon. For Kyiv, it will start at 5:53 p.m. UTC (12:53 p.m. UTC-5). You will be able to see how the planet disappears rather quickly, in less than a minute, behind the unlit side of the Moon.
On the night of 13-14 January, similar coverage, but this time of Mars, will be seen in much of the US and southern Africa.
On 18 January, you can witness Venus and Saturn kissing romantically in the evening sky, just 2° apart over the southwestern horizon. March 1 will also be interesting: although the two planets will be moving away from each other, they will be joined by the fragile crescent of the young Moon.
10-13 April is a challenge for real foodies: bright Venus will hang low in the east, with Mercury and Saturn directly below it.
The morning of 25 April will bring a tight grouping: low in the east, Venus, the thin old Moon, and Saturn will line up side by side, with Mercury rising even lower and further east.
There’s a real show for early birds on 12 August, as two of the brightest planets – Venus and Jupiter – will converge in the early morning sky above the eastern horizon! The distance between them will be less than 1°, and you will be able to see both planets in the same field of view with binoculars or a small telescope.
Events in the Saturn system
Saturn is worth a special mention this year because it will lose its rings in 2025. The tilt of Saturn’s axis of rotation is almost 27°, which means that, like on Earth, Saturn has a change of seasons. Twice during a Saturnian year, which is almost 29.5 Earth years, the planet experiences an equinox, during which we can see its rings from the rib. This is exactly what will happen on 23 March 2025: for the terrestrial observer, the planet will lose its fantastic “outfit”. Unfortunately, we will not be able to observe this phenomenon directly, because in mid-March the planet will be on the opposite side of the Sun. This configuration is called a conjunction. Better conditions for observing the planet will begin in the summer, before sunrise. In August, the inclination of the rings will begin to decrease again, and in November-December, only a thin stripe will remain.
The closed rings give us a great alternative – we can observe the shadows of satellites on Saturn’s disc. These events happen almost every day, but for the vast majority of them, you will need a fairly large telescope – from 300 mm in diameter. The easiest object to observe in this sense is Titan. Several transits of its shadow have already occurred at the end of 2024, and there are 3 more to come, potentially available to owners of medium and large amateur telescopes: 7 and 23 January, and 8 February. More details on observing conditions can be found here.
List of events in chronological order
3 January – maximum of the Quadrantids meteor shower
4 January – Saturn covered by the Moon
7 January – the transit of Titan’s shadow across Saturn’s disc
10 January – Venus at greatest eastern elongation
13 January – comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) passes perihelion
16 January – Mars in opposition
18 January – conjunction of Venus and Saturn
23 January – the transit of Titan’s shadow across Saturn’s disc
8 February – the transit of Titan’s shadow across Saturn’s disc
16 February – Venus reaches peak brightness
24 February – the transit of Titan’s shadow across Saturn’s disc
8 March – Mercury at greatest eastern elongation – the best evening visibility of Mercury for the year
14 March – total lunar eclipse, but in Ukraine will be observed only in the penumbral phase
29 March – a partial solar eclipse, in Ukraine will almost not be observed
10 April – Mercury and Saturn conjunction
21 April – Mercury is at its greatest westerly elongation
22 April – the maximum of the Lyrid meteor shower
28 April – Venus and Saturn conjunction
2 May – asteroid Vesta in opposition
6 May – maximum of the meteor shower Eta Aquariids
1 June – Venus is at its greatest westerly elongation
29 June – Saturn and Neptune conjunction
4 July – Mercury is at its greatest eastern elongation
4 July – the conjunction of Venus and Uranus
31 July – the maximum of the Delta Aquariids meteor shower
6 August – Saturn and Neptune conjunction
10 August – asteroid Pallas in opposition
12 August – Venus and Jupiter conjunction
12 August – maximum of the Perseid meteor shower
19 August – Mercury at greatest westerly elongation
7 September – total lunar eclips
19 September – covering of Venus by the Moon in the daytime sky
21 September – Saturn in opposition
23 September – Neptune in opposition
10 October – asteroid Ceres in opposition
19 October – Mercury and Mars conjunction
21 October – maximum of the Orionid meteor shower
30 October – Mercury at greatest eastern elongation
13 November – Mercury and Mars conjunction
17 November – maximum of the Leonids meteor shower
21 November – Uranus in opposition
7 December – Mercury at greatest westerly elongation – the best morning visibility of Mercury for the year
14 December – maximum of the Geminid meteor shower
Our list of the most interesting events would be incomplete if we did not mention the high level of solar activity, which, according to scientists’ forecasts, will last the entire current year. This means that we expect bright flares, powerful coronal mass ejections and, as a consequence, amazing auroras. This last spectacle is quite unpredictable, but the best time for aurorae will be around the equinoxes – both spring and autumn.
We wish you as many clear nights as possible in 2025 and interesting observations!
