10/12/2025
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Two comets and a meteor shower – at the same time!
In a rare cosmic coincidence, two bright comets are expected to pass close to Earth in late October, right as the Orionid meteor shower peaks – and just as the new moon creates the darkest skies of the month.
The two comets are C/2025 R2 (SWAN) and C/2025 A6 (Lemmon). Both were discovered this year, and each could reach magnitude 4 brightness – just within naked-eye visibility under dark skies. If predictions hold, they’ll be visible from both hemispheres using binoculars or a backyard telescope.
But here’s where it gets extraordinary: Both comets will be closest to Earth on the same night – October 21, the exact peak of the Orionid meteor shower, when about 20 meteors per hour are expected. And since it’s also the night of the new moon, the sky will be perfectly dark – giving us ideal conditions to see both comets and shooting stars.
SWAN R2 is a long-period comet with an orbit of over 22,000 years, while Lemmon was spotted by the Mount Lemmon Survey in Arizona. As they approach the inner solar system, there’s still some uncertainty – they may brighten dramatically, or break apart near the sun.
But if they survive and brighten as expected, skywatchers may witness something that hasn’t happened in decades: two comets visible in the same sky, alongside a meteor shower.
Mark your calendars for October 20–23 – and look up.
