Celestial events to watch in 2025

Illustration of solar and lunar eclipses, meteor showers, supernova flares

The cosmos never stop putting on a show

(Image credit: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images)

last updated 13 February 2025

The cosmos are a treasure trove of natural phenomena that can be viewed with minimal equipment and a little patience. Throughout the coming year, there will be myriad opportunities to see meteor showers, eclipses and other celestial events. No matter where you live, you can look up and witness something beautiful in the sky. Here is a list of upcoming cosmic phenomena.

Blood moon (March 13 - 14, 2025)

A blood moon or total lunar eclipse will occur in the middle of the night between March 13 and 14. During a total lunar eclipse, the moon "moves into the inner part of Earth's shadow, or the umbra," said NASA. "Some of the sunlight passing through Earth's atmosphere reaches the Moon's surface, lighting it dimly. Colors with shorter wavelengths — the blues and violets ― scatter more easily than colors with longer wavelengths, like red and orange." This makes the moon appear reddish-orange in the sky.

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March also includes a partial solar eclipse where the sun will appear as a crescent while the moon mostly covers it. As a result, there will be "noticeable changes in daylight and temperature," said AZCentral. The event is expected to begin just before 5 a.m. EST on March 29 and peak at approximately 6:47 a.m. In the northern hemisphere, some regions could see a maximum of 92% of the sun eclipsed by the moon, "but nowhere on Earth will see a total solar eclipse," said In-the-sky.org.

Overlapping with the Lyrid shower, the Eta Aquarids will begin toward the end of April and peak on the dawn of May 5. The Eta Aquarids originate from the famous Halley's comet. At its peak, "in the southern half of the U.S., you might see 10 to 20 meteors per hour under a dark sky, with no moon," said EarthSky. "Farther south — at latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere — you might see two to three times that number."

June solstice, or summer solstice in the northern hemisphere, is the day when the sun hits the northernmost point on Earth's orbit. This makes it the longest day in the northern hemisphere and the shortest day in the southern hemisphere. "This effect is greatest in locations that are farther away from the equator," said Time and Date. "In tropical areas, the longest day is just a little longer than 12 hours; in the temperate zone, it is significantly longer; and places within the Arctic Circle experience Midnight Sun or polar day, when the Sun does not set at night." The reverse is true in the south, with the Antarctic circle experiencing a polar night.

A total lunar eclipse happens when the Earth is between the sun and a full moon in space, making the moon appear red. One will be visible in September from western Australia, Asia and Europe. "When 100% of the lunar surface is draped in orange-red light, the all-important totality will last 82 minutes, making it a very long-duration total lunar eclipse," said Space.com. "This total lunar eclipse will occur 2.7 days before the moon reaches perigee — its closest point to Earth on its slightly elliptical orbit — making it slightly larger than average."

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Devika Rao has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022, covering science, the environment, climate and business. She previously worked as a policy associate for a nonprofit organization advocating for environmental action from a business perspective.