Under a southern sky
There’s always plenty happening in the night sky and South Australia’s a great spot for stargazing.
Here are four celestial events to brighten the night before year’s end.
1. Total lunar eclipse/blood moon
Not to be confused with the spooky gloom of a solar eclipse – when the moon blocks out the sun – a lunar eclipse occurs when Earth is between the sun and the moon.
When this happens, the only light that reaches the moon is filtered through Earth’s atmosphere, which scatters much of the short wavelength blue light. This leaves only the reddish end of the light spectrum to be splashed on the moon’s surface, hence it’s blood-moon moniker.
When and where
On 7 September 2025 the eclipse will occur gradually over about five and a half hours as the three players move into position, with the moon totally eclipsed from about 3am to 4.20am.
Celestial wonders are best observed away from city lights, but weather permitting, it should still be a pretty good show in town.
2. Leonids Meteor Shower
Leonids Meteor Shower is the debris left in the wake of comet Tempel-Tuttle, named after its discoverers, Ernst Tempel and Horace Tuttle.
Although the comet only trips around the sun every 33 years – and it’s not this year – it leaves a long-term trail of grit in its wake, which Earth passes through around November each year.
Most of the fragments that enter the atmosphere are tiny, but because they’re travelling at 70km per second (252,000km/h) they burn fiercely when rubbed against the friction of the atmosphere.
When the comet returns on its 33-year cycle, the sprinkling of meteors may well become a storm. The most recent Leonid meteor storm was in 2002.
When and where
The shower peaks from 17-18 November. Again, it’s best to get away from city lights, and look north-east towards the Leo constellation from about 2.30am until dawn.
Viewing will probably be better on the eastern side of the Mount Lofty Ranges.
3. Super moon
The moon zips around the Earth in an elliptical rather than circular orbit. If a full moon occurs when the moon is nearest to earth, it’s called a super moon.
The apparent difference in size between a full moon at its closest and furthest from Earth is around 14 per cent, and the moon at its nearest can appear about 30 per cent brighter.
When and where
There’ll be three super moons on consecutive months – 7 September, 8 October and 4 November.
Moonrise is the best time to enjoy the full blast because the moon looks bigger when it’s near the horizon – but it’s not.
This optical anomaly is known as the moon illusion, and although scientists have several theories to explain this visual trickery, they’ve yet to reach a consensus.
4. Geminid meteor shower
The Geminid meteor shower is a regular summer visitor in December. The flaming gravel we see in the night sky is shed by asteroid 3200 Phaethon, which scoots around the cosmos at 26km per second, or 93,600km/h, leaving behind a trail of debris.
When and where
The best viewing nights in 2025 will be 13-15 December. Find a dark spot away from city lights and look north towards the constellation Gemini.
For a full list of celestial viewing treats, check out the Sky-Watcher Australia Astronomy Calendar 2025.