🌌🔭 NGC 55 – Galaxy Watch!
📅 24 Sept 2025
🕛 Best time: Around midnight IST
✨ The barred irregular galaxy NGC 55 (mag 8.2) in Sculptor is now well placed for viewing!
📍 From New Delhi:
🕐 Visible: 00:04 – 00:44 IST
🔭 Altitude: ~21°–22° (South)
🌍 Best viewed from the Southern Hemisphere
🔎 Not visible to the naked eye, but a treat through binoculars or small telescopes!
Catch this faint galaxy while it’s high in the sky!
🌙🔴 Moon–Mars Conjunction
📅 24 Sept 2025 | 🕗 20:21 IST
✨ A young crescent Moon (3 days old) pairs up with fiery Mars in the constellation Virgo ♍
🔭 Separated by 3°56′ — perfect for naked-eye or binocular viewing!
🔴 Mars (mag 1.6)
🌙 Moon (mag -9.7)
💫 Look west after sunset for this celestial meetup!
🔵✨ Neptune at Opposition
📅 23 Sept 2025 | 🕕 18:15 IST
📍 Visible from New Delhi: 20:00 – 04:33 IST
🔭 Neptune is opposite the Sun and closest to Earth, shining all night in Pisces ♓
🪐 Best time to spot this distant blue world!
🌌 Viewing Highlights:
🔹 Rises: 20:00 (East)
🔹 Peaks: 00:17 – 60° high (South)
🔹 Sets: 04:33 (West)
📷 A telescope is a must — catch a glimpse of the solar system’s most elusive giant!
🌍☀️ September Equinox
📅 22 Sept 2025 | 🕛 23:50 IST
🍂 Autumn begins in the Northern Hemisphere
🌱 Spring begins in the Southern Hemisphere
🔄 Day and night are nearly equal worldwide
🌅 Sun rises exactly in the east, sets exactly in the west
📖 Equinox comes from Latin:
aequus = equal | nox = night
✨ A perfect balance of light and dark — only twice a year!
🌑 New Moon
📅 22 Sept 2025 | 🕐 01:25 IST
✨ A fresh lunar cycle begins!
The Moon aligns between the Earth and Sun, lost in sunlight and invisible to the naked eye. 🌞🌍🌙
🔄 This phase marks the start of the 29.5-day lunar journey through its changing shapes — from crescent to full and back again.
🌓 Each night, the Moon will rise later, slowly growing and glowing into the night sky.
🌘☀️ Partial Solar Eclipse
📅 21–22 Sept 2025
🕓 23:01 IST – 03:23 IST
🌍 Visible from: Antarctica & parts of Oceania
🌞 Max coverage: Up to 79% of the Sun’s disk
🔭 No total eclipse this time — the Sun and Moon won’t perfectly align anywhere on Earth. Still, skywatchers in the southern hemisphere will witness a spectacular bite taken out of the Sun!
❌ Not visible from India
🪐✨ Saturn at Opposition
📅 21 Sept 2025 | 🕚 11:07 IST
📍 Visible from New Delhi: 19:16 – 05:20 IST
🌌 Saturn shines at its brightest & biggest tonight!
Opposite the Sun and rising at sunset, this ringed giant stays visible all night in the constellation Pisces ♓
🔭 Best Viewing:
🕖 Rises: 19:16 (East)
🔝 Peaks: 00:18 — 58° high in southern sky
🌅 Sets: 05:20 (West)
✨ A perfect night to view Saturn’s rings — binoculars recommended, telescope ideal!
🌙💫 Lunar Occultation of Venus
📅 19 Sept 2025 | ⏱ 16:04 – 19:56 IST
✨ The Moon will pass in front of Venus, creating a stunning lunar occultation — where Venus briefly disappears behind the Moon!
🌍 Visible from:
Africa, Europe, Western Russia, Canada, Greenland & parts of Asia
❌ Not visible from India (New Delhi)
🔭 For the rest of the world, a beautiful close conjunction will still be visible — with Venus glowing next to the crescent Moon in the constellation Leo ♌
💡 A must-watch for skywatchers in the visible zones — especially with binoculars or a small telescope!
🌙💫 Moon–Venus Conjunction
📅 19 Sept 2025 | 🕓 Conjunction: 17:16 IST
📍 Visible: 04:05 – 05:50 IST | New Delhi
✨ The slim crescent Moon (27 days old) and dazzling Venus (mag -3.9) rise together in the pre-dawn sky 🌅
🌓 Separated by just 48 arcminutes — a beautiful appulse in Leo ♌
🔭 Too wide for a telescope, but a gorgeous naked-eye or binocular view!
🌌 Catch them glowing low in the eastern sky, climbing to 22° before sunrise.
🌙🪐 Moon–Jupiter Conjunction
📅 16 Sept 2025 | 🕓 16:35 IST
📍 Visible from: 01:13 – 05:49 IST | New Delhi
✨ A stunning pre-dawn pairing!
🌕 The 24-day-old Moon passes just 4°33′ north of brilliant Jupiter
🔭 Too wide for telescope, but perfect for naked eye or binoculars
♊ Both shine in the constellation Gemini
🌅 Look east before sunrise — catch this celestial duo lighting up the sky!
