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The constellation Orion pictured above a lake at sunset. | Credit: Christophe LEHENAFF via Getty Images
Autumn has spread across the Northern Hemisphere, heralding the start of longer, darker nights that serve as the perfect backdrop for amateur astronomers looking to explore the wonders of the night sky.
Our sky is constantly changing as the relentless passing of the seasons and the movement of the planets, the moon, comets And Earth itself depicts an ever-changing series of astronomical targets.
Join us as we explore a selection of spectacular sights chosen to highlight the diversity of the autumn sky, which will be visible through both telescopes and binoculars, or even with the naked eye, assuming a particular comet continues its brightening trend!
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Orion, the hunter
The constellation Orion rises in the east around midnight in mid-October and provides a spectacular sight in the early morning sky, by which time the star formation will have drifted to a position high above the southern horizon.
A star map showing the constellation Orion above the eastern horizon in autumn. | Credit: Created by Anthony Wood in Canva
Orion’s belt
Look for the three stars that make up the distinctive formation Orion’s belt – Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka – shines about 40 degrees above the southern horizon before sunrise. To estimate 10 degrees in the sky, use the width of your clenched posture, first at arm’s length.
Betelgeuse
Above the belt of Orion, the red giant Betelgeuse marks the hunter’s right shoulder in constellation drawings, although it appears on the left when viewed from the air. Betelgeuse, formally known as Alpha Orionis, will one day end its life in spectacular fashion supernova explosion when exhausting the last of the fuel, which could be as bright as the full moon.
Orion Nebula
Those viewing from a dark sky location may also notice a hazy patch of light hanging about 5 degrees below Orion’s belt. That spot is the Orion Nebulawhich, at just 1,500 light-years away, is one of the closest star-forming regions to Earth and makes a wonderful target for binoculars or a 6-inch telescope.
The Orionid meteor shower
The Orionid meteor shower is active from October 2 to November 7 and reaches a peak of activity on October 20-21, when up to twenty shooting stars can be seen crossing the night sky every hour.
An Orionid meteor pictured in the sky over China. | Credit: Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images
Orionide meteors appear to come from a point in the sky known as a radiation source, located near the red giant Betelgeuse. To find meteors with the longest trails, give your eyes 30 minutes to adjust to the dark and find a point 40 degrees above the beam angle where the meteor trails are longest.
The shower is best seen between midnight and sunrise on October 21, unfolding against a stunningly dark, moonless sky.
The Andromeda Galaxy
The Andromeda Galaxy lies almost directly overhead in the hours around midnight on October evenings, providing a perfect opportunity to explore the Milky Way‘s nearest neighbor without the atmospheric interference that comes from being close to the horizon.
The Andromeda Galaxy shines next to a Perseid meteor. | Credit: STAN HONDA/AFP via Getty Images
Andromeda is huge spiral galaxy formed by the merger of several smaller galaxies billions of years ago. The vast cosmic structure contains approximately 260,000 light years and contains well over a trillion stars.
The galaxy is bright enough to be noticeable to the naked eye in dark sky conditions as a faint oval haze in the night sky, while a telescope with an aperture of about 6 inches will help reveal the bright core surrounded by a haze of light.
A star map showing how to use Cassiopeia to find the Andromeda Galaxy. | Credit: Created in Canva by Anthony Wood
To find Andromeda, you’ll need to locate the constellation Cassiopeia, which forms a prominent ‘M’ shape high in the northern sky. The left three stars of the five-star formation will form a pointer, with Alpha Cassiopeiae, or Shedar, as the point, leading you to our galactic neighbor.
Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon)
Now to the wildcard on our list. Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon), discovered on January 3 by astronomers using a 60-inch telescope at the Mount Lemmon Observatory in Arizona. The wandering comet brightened considerably as it got closer the sun all year round, leading to an increase in activity, as masses of dust and gas are emitted by the wandering body and then illuminated by sunlight.
Comet Lemmon as captured from Málaga, south of Spain in October 2025. | Credit: Javier Zayas Photography via Getty Images
Comet Lemmon’s bright core and ethereal tail are already visible as a blurry spot of light through backyard telescopes and astronomical binoculars, with many excited that it will become bright enough to take a target for the naked eye in the coming weeks!
Credit: Created by Anthony Wood in Canva.
Lemmon is constantly moving relative to the background stars out there and, for those in the Northern Hemisphere, is best viewed in the hours before sunrise. It can be found in mid-October, close to the bright star Psi Ursae Majoris in the constellation Ursa Majorheading towards the brightest stellar body in the constellation Canes Venatici, known as Cor Caroli.
Credit: Created by Anthony Wood in Canva
Check out our guide at how to view and photograph comets if you’re interested in capturing your own view of Comet C/2025 A6 Lemmon before it disappears from Earth’s skies for more than a thousand years.
The gas giant Saturn
Saturn makes for a particularly bright and brilliant target in the autumn months, having recently reached opposition – the point at which it is opposite the sun in our sky – just a few weeks ago.
The gas giant will appear as a clear “evening star“shining above the eastern horizon at sunset in October, beneath the head of the great Western Fish, represented in the constellation
With a telescope with an aperture of 6 inches or more, you can make out the cloud bands that divide the majestic disk, along with the razor-thin profile of the extended rings, which are currently nearly edge-on to Earth after crossing the ring plane in March earlier this year. It can be helpful to place color filters on your telescope to reveal subtle details in Saturn’s cloud surface telescope maker Celestron.
If you’re looking to upgrade your equipment, check out our guides for the best telescopes And binoculars for viewing the night sky as we head towards peak astronomy season. Our guides on the best cameras And lenses for imaging the night sky can ensure you’re ready to make the most of the next big skywatching event.
Editor’s note: If you would like to share your astrophotography with Space.com readers, send your photo(s), comments, and your name and location to spacephotos@space.com.
