Bintel's Ultimate Sky Guide for May 2025

Welcome to Bintel's first edition of our new monthly sky guide for all Australian (and Kiwi) observers—a regular breakdown of what’s worth looking up for, no matter if you’re observing with a telescope, binoculars, or just your own eyes. Each month we'll highlight which planets are well placed and when to view them, standout deep sky targets for the month, and everything in between—from meteor showers to hidden lunar features.

So without further ado, let's answer the question....

What's in the Sky?

May offers a solid mix of events for astronomers, with activity across the solar system and beyond. The month starts strong with the Eta Aquarid meteor shower, one of the year’s better pre-dawn displays. Venus reaches greatest western elongation and shows off a crisp first quarter phase later in the month, while Saturn returns to the morning sky with its rings edge-on—a rare and striking sight. For deep sky observers, the Great Carina Nebula is ideally placed in the evening, along with several standout southern clusters that offer great views through the eyepiece and strong results for both smart telescope users and astrophotographers.

Solar System:

A May Meteor Shower, The Eta Aquarids:

Kicking off the month is one of the year’s best meteor showers—the Eta Aquarids, peaking in the early hours of May 6th. Caused by debris from Halley’s Comet, this shower can produce up to 50 meteors per hour under dark skies. The best viewing is just before dawn, when Aquarius rises higher in the east. No telescope required—just a comfy spot and a clear view of the eastern sky. We recommend getting as far away as you can from light pollution to see the most meteors.

Best viewed between 3-5 am.

Lunar Features:

Between 6-7pm from May 3rd–6th offers a good chance to observe Mare Australe, a lesser-seen lunar mare located near the Moon’s southeastern limb. This region is normally hidden from view, but becomes visible during periods of favorable libration—a slight oscillation in the Moon’s orientation caused by its tilted, elliptical orbit.

Mare Australe is a large, irregularly shaped lava plain about 900 km wide. Unlike the more familiar, smooth maria on the near side, it's broken up by overlapping impact craters and surrounded by rugged highlands, giving it a fractured appearance. Because of its location near the limb, it’s often seen at a sharp angle, making surface detail harder to resolve. Best observed with a telescope, magnification between 80x-150x is ideal.

Best viewed between 6:00 -7:00 pm.

The Planets:

The morning sky from Sydney at 5:30 am facing North East on May the 28th.

Mars:

In early May, Mars sits low on the northern horizon during twilight hours. While it’s now past opposition and noticeably dimmer than earlier in the year, it's still worth catching before it disappears from the evening sky. After a few months, Mars won’t return to a favourable viewing position until late 2026, making this one of your last chances to spot it for a while.

Best viewed between 6:00 -7:00 pm.

Saturn:

From around May 28th, early risers will be rewarded with Saturn returning to the pre-dawn sky. This is a particularly special time to observe it—its iconic rings are currently edge-on, making them appear as a thin line or even briefly disappear from view entirely. This alignment only happens every 14–15 years, and while the ring plane will be edge-on again in November, May is the first time you'll be able to see the ring crossing this year. The planet’s shadow on the rings also vanishes, giving it an unusually flat and symmetrical look.

Best viewed between 4:30 - 5:30 am.

Neptune:

Rising near Saturn before dawn, Neptune sits at magnitude +7.9 and requires a telescope to observe. In smaller scopes at medium magnification (70–100x), it appears as a tiny, faint bluish point—just bright enough to stand out from surrounding stars. In larger scopes, especially 8" and up, it resolves into a very small but distinct blue-grey disk with a clean, steady outline. Even without much visual detail, just spotting Neptune alone is impressive—you're looking at the most distant (major) planet in the solar system, over 4.3 billion kilometers away!

Best viewed between 4:30 - 5:30 am.

Venus:

This month, Venus is moving toward its greatest western elongation (the point when Venus reaches its farthest distance from the Sun as seen from Earth, making it visible in the pre-dawn sky), making it an excellent time for early risers to spot the "Morning Star" in the pre-dawn sky, especially later in the month. 

At the start of May, Venus will be in its waning crescent phase, with only a small portion of the planet illuminated as it nears the Sun. However, by the end of the month, as Venus reaches its greatest western elongation, it will transition into its first quarter phase, appearing as a striking half-illuminated disk—similar to how the Moon looks during its first quarter phase. With the Sun’s light coming from the side, half of Venus will be brightly lit while the other half remains in shadow, offering a stunning view through binoculars or a small telescope.

Best viewed between 4:30 - 5:30 am.

 

Deep Sky:

The Great Carina Nebula (NGC 3372):

Photo by Chi Chan from our Bintel society Facebook group. Note the Gabriela Mistral nebula and Gem cluster also present in the top right.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

The Great Carina Nebula (NGC 3372) is easily one of the most spectacular deep sky objects visible from Australia—and a true Southern Hemisphere exclusive. It’s a massive star-forming region, around 7,500 light-years away, absolutely packed with glowing gas, dust lanes, and young, energetic stars.

NGC 3372 is visible in telescopes of all apertures in dark skies, but observers in light-polluted areas will benefit massively from using a UHC (Ultra High Contrast) filter, like the Astronomik UHC Filter, which helps suppress city skyglow and enhances nebular contrast. With enough aperture—generally 6" and above—you’ll be able to make out the dramatic “V”-shaped dust lanes cutting across the glowing gas, a sight that’s hard to forget.

For smart telescope users, one of the Carina Nebula’s greatest strengths—its sheer size—can also be its biggest challenge. It’s so expansive that it often exceeds the field of view of most smart scopes, making it tough to get the whole nebula in frame. Our recommendation is you can instead try to focus on specific areas of the Nebula, such as the infamous "Keyhole" just above the centre of the nebula.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Gabriela Mistral Nebula (NGC 3324):

The famous photo of the "Cosmic Cliffs" of NGC 3324 by the James Webb (left) and a photo of the whole region by our very own Jarrod Rueff from our Bintel society Facebook group.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐⭐

If the Carina Nebula is a bit too big to handle, the Gabriela Mistral Nebula (NGC 3324) makes a perfect alternative—especially for smart telescope users. Located on the northwestern edge of the Carina complex, this compact emission nebula gained worldwide attention after being featured in one of the first images released by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Unlike its sprawling neighbour, this target fits almost perfectly within the field of view of the SeeStar S50, making it an ideal subject for compact smart scopes. If you're using the Dwarf 3 or SeeStar S30, you'll not only capture NGC 3324 itself, but also start to pick up traces of the Carina Nebula’s surrounding nebulosity bleeding into the frame—adding depth and context to your image. Make sure to enable your light pollution filter and you’ve got one of the best wide-field compositions the region has to offer.

Visually, the nebulosity is very difficult to detect—even in larger scopes—but you can still enjoy the open star cluster embedded within the region.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Gem Cluster (NGC 3293):

Photo by Glenn Baxter of the Gem Cluster (left) and Gabriel Mistral Nebula (right) from our Bintel photo competition submissions.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐

If the Gabriela Mistral Nebula leaves you wanting more through the eyepiece, don’t worry—just a short hop away lies the Gem Cluster (NGC 3293), and it's a visual delight. Discovered in the 1820s by James Dunlop at Parramatta Observatory, it’s one of several southern sky targets first catalogued right here in Australia. It’s a compact open cluster that stands out nicely even in smaller scopes. I’ve had it resolve well in a Celestron StarSense 70 using a Saxon Cielo HD 6.5mm, and it really came alive in an 10" Saxon Dob with a Bintel SuperView 15mm.

For those using smart telescopes, you’ll be able to pick up a touch of faint Hydrogen Alpha nebulosity surrounding the cluster. It’s subtle, but adds a lovely context to this tight group of young stars, which are only around 10 million years old.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Southern Pleiades (IC 2602):

A crop from my own image of the Carina region.

 

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐

Another great target this month is the Southern Pleiades (IC 2602)—a brilliant open cluster that gives its northern cousin a real run for its money. It's bright enough to spot with the naked eye, even from suburban skies, showing up as a soft glow near the edge of the Carina constellation. Through binoculars or a wide-field scope, the cluster absolutely shines.

Like the Gem Cluster, it’s another object first charted under Aussie skies, logged by James Dunlop in the 1820s from Parramatta. IC 2602 is best viewed at low magnification, making it a perfect fit for Binoculars (such as these Saxon 20 x 80s) and small telescopes like the Celestron StarSense 70 paired with your lowest-power eyepiece.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Wishing Well Cluster (NGC 3532):

Photo by Jarrod Rueff from our Bintel society Facebook group.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐

I hope you're not clustered out, because NGC 3532—better known as the Wishing Well Cluster—is a real southern sky favourite. Getting it's name from it's resemblance to coins at the bottom of a well, it’s a rich open cluster with over 150 young, hot stars, sitting at around 1,300 light-years away, and absolutely stunning through the eyepiece.

Even from suburban skies, the Wishing Well Cluster stands out beautifully, with its dense field of bright stars forming a clear, rich pattern. Through the eyepiece you’ll see dozens of stars scattered across the field. In darker skies, the full extent of the cluster really opens up, revealing even more stars, and the subtle colour variations—soft blues, golds, and a hint of red—become much more pronounced, adding real depth to the view.

It’s another one of the standout objects first catalogued by James Dunlop in the 1820s from Parramatta, and it still earns its place as one of the best visual clusters in the sky.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038 and 4039):

Photo by Simon Kidd from our Bintel society Facebook group.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐⭐

For a real challenge this month, point your scope at the Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038 and 4039). Discovered by John Herschel in 1835 from the Cape of Good Hope, the Antennae are one of the most dramatic examples of galactic collision in the sky. They form a distinct heart shape, with long, faint tidal tails arcing outward as a result of their ongoing merger.

Visually, this is a tough target. You'll need very dark skies and a telescope 12 inches or larger to make out more than a faint smudge. For most observers, this one is all about imaging.

Smart telescopes can capture the Antennae, but expect to spend at least 30–60 minutes stacking just to begin pulling out the faint tidal tails. Shorter integrations will reveal the bright core, but the iconic structure takes time. This target really benefits from longer exposures, so this is a good opportunity to use the new Equatorial mode of the ZWO Seestars and the Dwarf 3.

For astrophotography, this target is best suited to longer focal lengths.

Best viewed between 7:30 - 8:30 pm.

 

Some Extra Highlights:

 

The Hand Cluster (NGC 3114)

Image credit: Charles Pevsner.

 

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐

 

NGC 3114 is a large, loose open cluster in Carina that’s best enjoyed with a wide-field eyepiece or binoculars. It’s bright, easy to spot from suburban skies, and scattered with blue-white stars set against a rich Milky Way background. While not as dense as other clusters in the region, its sheer size and brightness make it a lovely low-power target.

Best viewed between 6:30 - 7:30 pm.

 

The Pearl Cluster (NGC 3766)

Another crop from my own image of the Carina region.

 

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐

The Pearl Cluster is a compact and striking open cluster in Centaurus. It’s packed with young, hot stars and looks great in small to mid-sized telescopes, even from suburban skies. A low-power eyepiece reveals a tight, slightly curved grouping with a few subtle hints of colour—an easy and rewarding visual target.

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

The Leo Triplet (M65, M66 and NGC 3628)

Photo by Mike Geisel from our Bintel society Facebook group.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

The Leo Triplet is a classic group of galaxies—M65, M66, and NGC 3628—grouped in a single field of view. It’s more of a northern hemisphere target, but still visible from Australia, rising midway up on the northern horizon. To observe them visually you'll need a large telescope and dark skies, otherwise, with some creative framing you'll be able to fit all 3 galaxies in the field of view of most smart telescopes. This triplet also serves as a great target for shorter focal length astrophotography set ups ordinarily not so suited for galaxy imaging.

Best viewed between 7:30 - 8:30 pm.

 

The Running Chicken Nebula (IC 2944)

Photo by Dom Henry from our Bintel society Facebook group.

Suitability rating:

Visual	⭐⭐
Smart Telescopes	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Astrophotography	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

The Running Chicken Nebula (IC 2944) is an emission nebula in Centaurus, with little to see visually beyond the embedded star cluster. But it’s a great target for smart telescopes and wide-field imaging setups, which easily capture the extended nebulosity and dark Bok globules (small, dark pockets of dust silhouetted against the nebula itself). I'd probably rate this as one of the best smart telescope targets this month (as evidenced by Dom's shot with a Dwarf 3 above).

Best viewed between 7:00 - 8:00 pm.

 

Moon Phases – May 2025

• 🌒 First Quarter – May 5th–6th
• 🌕 Full Moon – May 12th–13th
• 🌗 Last Quarter – May 20th–21st
• 🌑 New Moon – May 27th → The best time for deep sky observing and astrophotography.

Image credit: Moon Connection

Daily Moon Progression:

• May 1tst–4th – Waxing Crescent
• May 5th–6th – First Quarter
• May 7th–11th – Waxing Gibbous
• May 12th–13th – Full Moon
• May 14th–19th – Waning Gibbous
• May 20th–21st – Last Quarter
• May 22nd–26th – Waning Crescent
• May 27th – New Moon
• May 28th–31st – Waxing Crescent

 

That’s it for May’s sky highlights! With so much happening above us this month, we hope you find a moment to head outside and catch a few of these sights—and if you capture something great, don’t forget to share it with us!

This is our first time putting together such an in-depth edition of What’s in the Sky, and we’d really like to hear your thoughts. Was the level of detail useful? Are there specific types of objects, events, or observing tips you’d like us to include in future editions? We’re aiming to make this guide as helpful and relevant as possible, so let us know what worked for you—and what didn’t.