September 10, 2025, a comet that had avoided detection made its closest pass to the sun (reached perihelion) and not only survived but had a dramatic increase in its brightness. The comet is more easily seen in the southern hemisphere until now when it is visible in the evening sky in the northern hemisphere. I saw comet C/2025 R2
(SWAN) on October 10 and 11, 2025, with 10×42 binoculars from my country home in Montana at 45 degrees latitude. To see it, go outside right at sunset, face southwest, and start scanning the sky, low on the horizon and you’ll find comet C/ 2025 R2 (SWAN) traveling through the constellation Sagittarius and making a close pass to the
star Sabik on October 13, 2025. It can be difficult finding comets right after sunset because the sky is not quite dark enough to allow you to see the comet. But I just started right at sunset using a pair of 10×42 binoculars to look in the general area where the comet is supposed to be. As the sky continues to darken, it’ll eventually pop into view.
The comet will pass by the Eagle Nebula, M16, on October 17th, and this will provide an excellent opportunity to see it or take photos. If you use a low powered eyepiece of about 50 times magnification in your telescope you’ll be able to see the comet and the Eagle Nebula in the same field of view. Comet SWAN at this point is moving fast through the night sky and makes its closest approach to Earth around October 20th. Comets are unpredictable but the comet could brighten beyond its current magnitude 6 and it could give people all around the world some incredible opportunities to observe it into November 2025.
