The Chi Cygnids is a strange meteor shower that becomes more active every 5 years in September. And 2025 is one of those years! This video shows some Chi Cygnid meteors from September 4, 2025, in Puerto Rico. Video via Astronomical Society of the Caribbean.
September’s strange meteor shower: Chi Cygnids
A recently discovered meteor shower has been showing some activity this week. And it might become even more active during the next few nights, with a peak – or maximum activity – around September 13 to 15, 2025.
It’s called the Chi Cygnid meteor shower, named after its apparent radiant near the star Chi Cygni in Cygnus the Swan. The star Chi Cygni is a variable double star not far from the bright star Vega in Lyra the Harp.
Peter Jenniskens, an astronomer from NASA Ames Research Center and the SETI Institute, discovered this meteor shower. Some meteor cameras have detected good activity from it over the last week. And, based on previous observations, there’s something strange or unusual about this meteor shower. It has shown increased activity in 2010, 2015, 2020 and now in 2025. So it has a pattern of higher activity every five years.
The unusual Chi Cygnids
Annual meteor showers generally occur every year as Earth – as part of its orbit around the sun – intercepts debris in paths left by a comet or sometimes an asteroid.
The return of the Chi Cygnids every five years suggests it might be from particles left by an unknown Jupiter-family comet. And the location of the related debris in our solar system might slightly change or move thanks to the gravitational influence of Jupiter.
Many of the best known or famous meteor showers require that you observe late in the night. But the Chi Cygnids’ radiant is high in the sky – close to the zenith – as soon as it gets dark. Therefore, it’s an early evening meteor shower.
Chi Cygnid meteors are not usually bright, but they do have something that catches an observers’ attention: these meteors are quite slow. They have an estimated speed of just 15 km per second (33,500 mph), which is very slow compared to the meteors of most showers. Compare them to the Perseids, which zip through the air at about 60 km per second (133,000 mph). So the slow speed makes it easier for you to detect meteors if observing from dark locations.
What to expect from the Chi Cygnids
As recently as September 4, 2025, cameras belonging to the Astronomical Society of the Caribbean detected a few slow-moving meteors from Puerto Rico. All appeared to radiate from the constellation Cygnus.
On the night of September 13 to 14, the 51%-illuminated moon appears just before midnight. Meanwhile, on the night of September 14 to 15, our moon will be around 40% illuminated and become visible shortly after midnight.
This means the sky will be dark in the early evening, enhancing the probability of seeing a few meteors. This is especially true for dark locations away from light-polluted skies.
During the 2020 return of this shower, low-light cameras detected 449 meteors identified as likely shower members. This doesn’t guarantee we’ll see hundreds this year, but we can try to catch some of these episodic meteors.
Where should you look to see this strange meteor shower?
As with any meteor shower, you don’t have to look at its radiant, because meteors can appear in any area of the sky. However, it’s best not to look for meteors while standing. Instead, observe from a reclining chair or from the ground. This will allow you to cover more area of the sky with your vision, looking directly up at the sky and increasing your probability of seeing some meteors.
Turn off exterior lights if observing from your backyard. The darker the location, the higher the probability that you might glimpse some nice meteors. Good luck!
Bottom line: The Chi Cygnids is a strange meteor shower that is more active every five years, and 2025 is one of those years. Observing info here.
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