Don't miss these 5 cool astronomical events in October

October is such a wonderful month for star-gazing, and we have several astronomical events happening that we want you to know about.

So mark your calendars for these cool events happening in the October skies.

Take a look:

Harvest Moon – October 6

928a3a88 9ce3 40cf a65a fbcc22092fd2 — The Harvest Moon is October 6. (“Full Harvest Moon in WA 9/24/18” by Landscapes in The West is licensed under CC PDM 1.0)

The first supermoon of 2025 is the Harvest Moon, which is traditionally the first full moon of autumn. This is when the moon is closest to the earth and, as the name implies, appears larger in the sky.

According to the Old Farmers Almanac, the Harvest Moon this year will be 224,600 miles from Earth. And, can best be viewed just after sunset.

Draconids Meteor Shower – October 7

b2692544 8a3f 4326 9ead 05290c4ce7a3 — “2018 Draconid Meteor Shower No 4” by ikewinski is licensed under CC BY 2.0

The Draconids is unusual, in that it is best viewed in the early evening instead of early morning like most other meteor showers.

According to “Sea and Sky,” the best viewing will be in the early evening from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

New Moon – October 21

3db15cfe 20cc 48bd a9bf 8a0a25aab29d — You can see some cool stuff on the night of the New Moon. (“New Moon” by NASA Goddard Photo and Video is licensed under CC BY 2.0)

The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun on this day, and will not be visible in the night sky.

This is a great time to see objects such as galaxies and star clusters with no moonlight to interfere. And it is great for the next astronomical event…

Orionids Meteor Shower – October 21-22

dcb1bfef 370f 4931 a25c fe39a2584317 — What a fun event to see! (“Orionid Meteor Shower is Underway” by Jeff Sullivan (www.JeffSullivanPhotography.com) is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

This meteor shower can produce up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. While it occurs annually from October 2 to November 7, this year it peaks on the night of October 21 and the morning of October 22.

Because of the New Moon, this should be a great shower to view. The best time for viewing is after midnight from a location with minimal light pollution.

Mercury at Greatest Eastern Elongation – October 29

63b28782 0840 4fcd b7ba ec344ef4c930 — View Mercury just after sunset on October 29. (“Mercury010417” by blobrana2 is licensed under CC PDM 1.0)

October 29 is the best time to view Mercury, as it reaches its greatest eastern elongation of 23.9 degrees from the Sun.

Look for the planet low in the western sky just after sunset.

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