# Wednesday, September 30, 2026

Marin Night Skies · Wed, 30 Sep 2026 23:34:30 GMT · 2:49

Maya: Good evening, and welcome to Mahrin Night Skies, your daily guide to what's up after dark over Mahrin County. It's Wednesday, September thirtieth, and I'm Maya.
Devon: And I'm Devon. Tonight the sky gives us a bright moon and a ringed planet at its very best, so let's get into it.
Maya: Starting overhead with the moon. It's a waning gibbous tonight, about eighty-two percent lit, just four days past full. It rises late this evening and stays up until morning, so it will wash out the fainter stars early on.
Devon: But don't curse the moonlight. With the terminator, that line between light and dark, creeping across the surface, the long shadows make craters and canyons pop. Even a small telescope or steady binoculars will show you detail you miss at full moon.
Maya: Now the headline act. Saturn is nearing opposition, the point where Earth sits directly between Saturn and the sun. That happens October fourth, and it means Saturn is up essentially all night and at its biggest and brightest for the year.
Devon: Find it rising in the east around sunset, glowing steady and golden. Through any small telescope the rings are unmistakable. If you only look at one planet this week, make it Saturn.
Maya: Jupiter is the morning planet right now, rising around two thirty A M and shining bright before sunrise. And right after sunset, look low in the west for Venus, blazing like a lantern just above the horizon.
Devon: Mars is up there too, but it's a late-night target, rising after one A M and best in the hours before dawn.
Maya: Now the calendar, because October is meteor season. First up, the Draconids, peaking the night of October eighth. This is the rare shower that's best in the evening, just after dark, radiating from the constellation Draco in the northwest.
Devon: Rates are modest, around five to ten meteors per hour, but the timing is perfect. The new moon is October tenth, so the sky will be dark, and the Draconids are famous for surprise outbursts. Worth an evening under the stars.
Maya: Then mark October twenty-first and twenty-second for the Orionids, debris from Halley's Comet. Expect around twenty meteors per hour, but wait until after midnight, and ideally after the moon sets around two A M, for the best show.
Devon: Two more dates for your calendar. October twelfth, Mercury reaches its greatest elongation, sitting as far from the sun as it gets, low in the west after sunset. Mercury is famously elusive, so this is your window.
Maya: And looking further out, Mars and Jupiter draw together through the fall, meeting in a close conjunction on November fourteenth.
Devon: Quick viewing notes for tonight. Skies over Mahrin are mostly clear this evening, with patchy fog possible late, after about nine or ten P M. So the smart play is to look early.
Maya: Head for high ground above the fog. The ridges of Mount Tamalpais or the dark skies out at Point Reyes are your best bets. Give your eyes twenty minutes to adapt, and bring a jacket. It's dropping into the mid-fifties.
Devon: One last thing. N O A A has a minor geomagnetic storm watch for October second. If it materializes, aurora could push further south than usual. For Northern California it's a long shot, but if you're up late that night, take a look north.
Maya: That's your sky for tonight. Clear skies, and we'll see you tomorrow at five on Mahrin Night Skies.