Meteor Activity Outlook for 13-19 September 2025

During this period, the moon reaches its last quarter phase on Sunday September 14th. On that date the half-illuminated moon will be located 90 degrees west of the sun and will rise near 22:00 local summer time (LST) on the previous evening. As the week progresses, the waning crescent moon will rise later in the morning and will be less of a nuisance to meteor observers. The estimated total hourly rates for evening observers this weekend should be near 4 as seen from mid-northern latitudes (45N) and 3 as seen from tropical southern locations (25S). For morning observers, the estimated total hourly rates should be near 11 as seen from mid-northern latitudes (45N) and 8 as seen from tropical southern locations (25S). The actual rates seen will also depend on factors such as personal light and motion perception, local weather conditions, alertness, and experience in watching meteor activity. Morning rates are slightly reduced during this period due to moonlight. Note that the hourly rates listed below are estimates as viewed from dark sky sites away from urban light sources. Observers viewing from urban areas will see less activity as only the brighter meteors will be visible from such locations.

The radiant (the area of the sky where meteors appear to shoot from) positions and rates listed below are exact for Saturday night/Sunday morning September 13/14. These positions do not change greatly day to day so the listed positions may be used during this entire period. Most star atlases (available online and at bookstores and planetariums) will provide maps with grid lines of the celestial coordinates so that you may find out exactly where these positions are located in the sky. I have also included charts of the sky that display the radiant positions for evening, midnight, and morning. The center of each chart is the sky directly overhead at the appropriate hour. These charts are oriented for facing south but can be used for any direction by rotating the charts to the desired direction. A planisphere or computer planetarium program is also useful in showing the sky at any time of night on any date of the year. Activity from each radiant is best seen when it is positioned highest in the sky (culmination), either due north or south along the meridian, depending on your latitude. Radiants that rise after midnight will not reach their highest point in the sky until daylight. For these radiants, it is best to view them during the last few hours before dawn. It must be remembered that meteor activity is rarely seen at its radiant position. Rather they shoot outwards from the radiant, so it is best to center your field of view so that the radiant lies toward the edge and not the center. Viewing there will allow you to easily trace the path of each meteor back to the radiant (if it is a shower member) or in another direction if it is sporadic. Meteor activity is not seen from radiants that are located far below the horizon. The positions below are listed in a west to east manner in order of right ascension (celestial longitude). The positions listed first are located further west therefore are accessible earlier in the night while those listed further down the list rise later in the night.

Radiant Positions at 22:00 Local Summer Time

Radiant Positions at 01:00 Local Summer Time

Radiant Positions at 01:00 Local Summer Time

These sources of meteoric activity are expected to be active this week

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The chi Cygnids (CCY) were discovered on the night of 14/15 September 2015, when a weak outburst of meteors occurred where none had been observed before. Since then, little activity has been detected until August of 2020, when another mini outburst of possible CCY activity occurred south of the normal radiant between the constellations of Delphinus and Aquila. Some astronomers believe this early appearance may herald another return of the CCY’s from their normal radiant in southern Cygnus. Nothing unusual occurred in September 2020, but activity from this source should be monitored, nonetheless. The most probable dates of this occurring would be on the nights from September 14-16. At that time the radiant should be located near 20:00 (300) +33, a position 2 degrees south of the 4th magnitude star known as eta Cygni. These meteors can be seen all night long but are best seen near 22:00 LST when the radiant lies nearly overhead as seen from the northern hemisphere. Rates are expected to be low but anyone seeing any of these meteors should report them to the International Meteor Organization on their online visual meteor report form or respond to this article directly online.  With an entry velocity of 15 km/sec., the average meteor from this source would be of very slow velocity. Unfortunately, these meteors are not well seen from the southern hemisphere as Cygnus does not rise high into the sky from those locations.

The large Anthelion (ANT) radiant is currently centered at 00:16 (004) +02. This position lies in western Pisces, 5 degrees northeast of 1st magnitude Saturn. This radiant is best placed near 02:00 LST when it lies on the meridian and in the southern sky. Rates at this time should be near 2 no matter your location. With an entry velocity of 30 km/sec., the average Anthelion meteor would be of medium-slow velocity.

The August beta Piscids (BPI) were first mentioned by Luigi G. Jacchia in his book The Moon, Meteorites and Comets. The BPI’s’s are active from July 28-September 17, with the peak occurring on the August 22nd. The radiant currently is located near 00:40 (010) +13. This area of the sky is located in central Pisces, 5 degree north of the 4th magnitude star known as delta Piscium. To best see these meteors look in the southern sky near 0300 LST, when it lies on the meridian and is located highest in the sky. Hourly rates at this time should be less than 1 no matter your location. With an entry velocity of 37m/sec., the average meteor from this source would be of medium velocity. These meteors are also known as the Northern delta Aquariids (NDA).

The September epsilon Perseids (SPE) are active from September 2-23, with maximum activity occurring on the 9^th. The current position of the radiant lies at 03:32 (053) +40. This area of the sky lies in central Perseus, directly between beta (Algol) and epsilon Persei. To best see these meteors, face half-way up toward the northeast during the last hour prior to dawn. Rates at this time may be near 1 per hour as seen from the northern hemisphere and less than 1 as seen from south of the equator. There have been outbursts from this source in the past, but none are predicted for this year. With an entry velocity of 64 km/sec., the average meteor would be of swift velocity.

The nu Eridanids (NUE) were co-discovered by Japanese observers using SonotoCo and Jürgen Rendtel and Sirko Molau of the IMO. Activity from this source stretches from August 31 to September 21 An ill-defined maximum occurs on September 8th. The radiant currently lies at 04:48 (072) +02, which places it in northeastern Eridanus, 7 degrees northwest of the 4^th magnitude star known as mu Eridani. Observers concentrating on this activity should face half-way up in the southeastern sky during the last dark hour prior to dawn to best view these meteors. Current rates are expected to be less than 1 per hour during this period no matter your location. With an entry velocity of 65 km/sec., the average meteor from this source would be of swift velocity.

The September Lyncids (SLY) are active from September 4-19 with maximum activity occurring on September 12^th. On September 4^th the radiant is located at 06:28 (097) +56, This position lies in northwestern Lynx, 5 degrees northeast of the 4th magnitude star known as delta Aurigae. To best see these meteors, view half-way up in the northeastern sky during the last hour prior to dawn. Rates are expected to be less than 1 per hour. With an entry velocity of 61 km/sec., the average meteor from this source would be of swift velocity. The meteors are not readily visible from the southern hemisphere as the radiant does not rise high enough before the onset of dawn.

Sporadic meteors are those meteors that cannot be associated with any known meteor shower. All meteor showers are evolving and disperse over time to the point where they are no longer recognizable. Away from the peaks of the major annual showers, these sporadic meteors make up the bulk of the activity seen each night. As seen from the mid-northern hemisphere (45N) one would expect to see during this period approximately 8 sporadic meteors per hour during the last hour before dawn as seen from rural observing sites. Evening rates would be near 3 per hour. As seen from the tropical southern latitudes (25S), morning rates would be near 6 per hour as seen from rural observing sites and 2 per hour during the evening hours. Locations between these two extremes would see activity between these listed figures. Evening rates are slightly reduced due to moonlight.

The list below offers information in tabular form of the active showers that I feel are within reach of the visual observer to discern. Hourly rates are often less than one, so these sources are rarely listed as visual targets in most meteor shower lists. If you are like me and wish to associate as many meteors as possible with known sources, then you will appreciate these listings. Before claiming to have seen meteors from these class IV showers, you should attempt to determine if these meteors actually belong to them and are not chance alignments of sporadic meteors. You can note parameters such as duration, length, radiant distance and the elevation of each meteor to help compute the probability of shower association.  It should be remembered that slow meteors can be seen from fast showers, but fast meteors cannot be produced from slow showers. Slower showers are those with velocities less than 35/km per second. Slow meteors can appear from fast showers when they appear close to the radiant or low in the sky. The table located on page 22 of the IMO’s 2025 Meteor Shower Calendar is a big help in aiding in the identification of meteors. If you record the length and duration of each meteor, you can use this chart to check the probability of the meteor belonging to a shower of known velocity. If the angular velocity is similar to the figure in the table, then your meteor probably belongs to that shower. Recognizing meteors from obscure showers is certainly not for the beginning meteor observer as it takes many hours to get a feel of what you are seeing. It is our hope that you will advance beyond watching meteors as a fireworks display and will want to help us expand our knowledge of the heavenly bodies we encounter in the skies above by classifying each meteor you see. Rates and positions in the table are exact for Saturday night/Sunday morning.

You can keep track of the activity of these meteor showers as well as those beyond the limits of visual observing by visiting the NASA Meteor Shower Portal. You can move the sky globe to see different areas of the sky. Colored dots indicate shower meteors while white dots indicate sporadic (random) activity. The large orange disk indicates the position of the sun so little activity will be seen in that area of the sky.

Class Explanation: A scale to group meteor showers by their intensity:

• Class I: the strongest annual showers with Zenith Hourly Rates normally ten or better.
• Class II: reliable minor showers with ZHR’s normally two to ten.
• Class III: showers that do not provide annual activity. These showers are rarely active yet have the potential to produce a major display on occasion.
• Class IV: weak minor showers with ZHR’s rarely exceeding two. The study of these showers is best left to experienced observers who use plotting and angular velocity estimates to determine shower association. These weak showers are also good targets for video and photographic work. Observers with less experience are urged to limit their shower associations to showers with a rating of I to III.