Summer’s last stand

Meteor showers occur when Earth passes through the fine dust debris strewn around the orbit of a comet. This happens when Earth is in a similar position in its orbit every year, and meteor showers rep

Sometimes our gardens can feel a little washed out and exhausted in August – all that early-summer fizziness is beginning to take its toll on our plants. A bit like one feels around 3am at a party whe

1 Sep 00:00 AEST (31 Aug, 14:00 UT) 15 Sep 23:00 AEST (13:00 UT) 30 Sep 22:00 AEST (12:00 UT) The chart accurately matches the sky on the dates and times shown for Sydney, Australia. The sky is differ

PODS OF ORCAS ARE DRAWN TO the coasts of northernmost Scotland in the summer months, lured by plentiful prey – especially seal pups. When on the hunt, they can come thrillingly close to rocky headland

BEST TIME TO SEE: 7 September 2025, from moonrise around 19:45 BST (18:45 UT) Remember the total lunar eclipse back in March? Unfortunately, for many observers across the UK, the weather wasn’t good,

1 Our Moonwatch target (see page 52), the walled plain Flammarion, is well placed this evening and tomorrow evening. You can also catch it on the waning Moon on the morning of 16 August. 2 This evenin