MAY 2025
From the Edge of the Universe to Our Galactic Backyard
May brings a quiet but noticeable shift in the night sky.
In the northern hemisphere, the reign of galaxies is nearing its end. They’re still there — bright and detailed — but now they share the spotlight with a new kind of structure: the tight, ancient swarms of globular clusters, rising higher each night.
In the south, the Milky Way is no longer a hint on the horizon. It dominates the sky now — a rich canvas of dust lanes, emission nebulae, and deep galactic colour.
From the delicate spirals of deep space to the compact brilliance of star clusters and the glow of our home galaxy, May marks the moment when the sky begins to thicken — more layers, more texture, more to explore.
May 2025 Deep-Sky Targets
May’s sky is full of contrast — from the last spirals of galaxy season to the dense swarms of ancient stars now rising higher each night.
There’s something here for every kind of setup — whether you’re shooting wide fields, long focal lengths, or exploring with a smart telescope. Each description below offers a visual intro and a few tips on what makes the target worth your time.
For the full breakdown — including FoV suggestions, filter recommendations, and integration tips — you can download this month’s Cosmic Astrophotography Planner (CAP) as a free PDF using the button below.
M13 – The Great Hercules Cluster
Constellation: Hercules | Distance: 22,000 light-years | Size: ~20’ | Apparent Magnitude: 5.8
M13 is the most prominent globular cluster in the northern sky — a dense swarm of over 300,000 stars bound together in a sphere about 145 light-years across. Visible even in small telescopes, it becomes especially impressive through long exposures, where the core resolves into a glittering ball of light surrounded by a halo of ancient stars. These stars are among the oldest in the galaxy, orbiting far above and below the galactic plane in the Milky Way’s halo.
Best for: Broadband imaging with short to moderate exposures. This is a great target for DSLR, OSC, and mono setups alike. Use RGB or LRGB filters, avoid narrowband, and aim to preserve star colour and structure right into the core. M13 is also suitable for smart telescopes.
M63 – The Sunflower Galaxy
Constellation: Canes Venatici | Distance: 27 million light-years | Size: ~12.6’ x 7.2’ | Apparent Magnitude: 9.3
M63 is a flocculent spiral galaxy — meaning its arms appear patchy and fragmented rather than grand and sweeping. These clumps of star formation and dust give it a textured, sun-like appearance, which earned it the name “Sunflower Galaxy.” It spans about 100,000 light-years across, making it roughly the same size as the Milky Way. M63 is also part of the M51 Group and reveals a faint stellar halo in deep exposures.
Best for: Broadband imaging with moderate to long focal lengths. Use RGB or LRGB filters and consider going deep to bring out subtle structure and the faint outer halo. Or try it with a smart telescope.
Telescope.live image data edited by Cosmic Captures
M53 & NGC 5053 – Contrasting Globular Clusters
Constellation: Coma Berenices | Distance: ~58,000 light-years (M53) | Size: ~12’ (M53) / ~10’ (NGC 5053) | Apparent Magnitude: 7.7 / 10.4
Just a degree apart in the sky, these two globular clusters offer a striking visual contrast. M53 is bright, dense, and compact — a classic example of a globular cluster. Nearby NGC 5053 is the opposite: diffuse, faint, and loosely bound. Both lie in the halo of the Milky Way, and deep surveys suggest they may even be physically interacting, connected by faint stellar streams.
Best for: A wide enough field to frame both clusters together — ideally 1.5° to 2.5°. Use RGB or LRGB imaging, keep exposures short enough to avoid burning out M53’s core, and aim to preserve star colours across the field.
Rho Ophiuchi – A Cosmic Color Palette
Constellation: Scorpius / Ophiuchus | Distance: ~400 light-years | Size: ~4° x 3° | Apparent Magnitude: varies
The Rho Ophiuchi region is one of the most photogenic areas in the night sky — a vibrant mix of glowing nebulae, reflection dust, dark lanes, and star clusters all packed into a single wide field. You’ll find golden Antares, icy blue reflection nebulae, deep brown dust clouds, emission regions, and the bright globular cluster M4 woven into one spectacular composition. Its relative brightness and position near the galactic core make it a dream target for astrophotographers.
Best for: Broadband imaging with wide fields of view (2–5°). A perfect target for DSLR and mirrorless setups. Use RGB or OSC — narrowband and light pollution filters will block the natural glow of the region’s subtle colors and reflection nebulae.
M83 – The Southern Pinwheel Galaxy
Constellation: Hydra | Distance: 15 million light-years | Size: ~13.1’ x 12.1’ | Apparent Magnitude: 7.5
M83 is a bright, face-on barred spiral galaxy — and one of the closest and most detailed of its kind in the southern sky. Roughly the size of the Milky Way, it features a well-defined central bar, multiple star-forming arms, and delicate outer extensions. It’s a nearby analogue to our own galaxy and an excellent example of galactic structure, colour, and star formation activity.
Best for: Broadband imaging with a field of view around 1°. Great for small refractors, mid-range telescopes, and even some smart telescopes. Use RGB or LRGB filters to bring out the natural colour and consider deeper exposures to reveal faint tidal features in the outer disk.
Telescope.live image data edited by Cosmic Captures
NGC 6188 – The Fighting Dragons of Ara
Constellation: Ara | Distance: ~4,000 light-years | Size: ~1.3° x 0.6° | Apparent Magnitude: ~6.0
NGC 6188 is a dramatic emission nebula sculpted by stellar winds and radiation from newly formed massive stars. Its iconic shape — resembling two dragons locked in battle — is the result of intense feedback from the young open cluster NGC 6193. This is a classic narrowband target with rich structure, texture, and contrast across the field.
Best for: Narrowband imaging with a field of view around 1° to 1.5°. Use Hα, OIII, and SII for mono setups, ideally with RGB stars. For one-shot colour cameras, a dual narrowband Hα/OIII filter works well. Technically possible with smart telescopes, but requires deep integration and is best suited for dedicated users.
Telescope.live image data edited by Cosmic Captures
Crux and the Coalsack – Southern Skies in Silhouette
Constellation: Crux | Distance: Coalsack ~600 light-years | Size: ~10° x 15° | Apparent Magnitude: visible as a dark patch
Crux is the smallest constellation in the sky — but one of the most iconic. Its cross-shaped asterism is instantly recognisable in the Southern Hemisphere and even served as the inspiration for the European Southern Observatory’s logo. Right beside it lies the Coalsack Nebula, a dense cloud of interstellar dust easily seen with the naked eye. Rather than shining, it obscures — poking a dark hole into the bright backdrop of the Milky Way.
Best for: Wide-field broadband imaging with DSLR or mirrorless cameras. A field of view from 5° to 10° works well to frame Crux and the Coalsack together. Use no filters and focus on capturing subtle contrast and natural star colour across the region.
The main Moon Phases in May 2025
Planning your imaging sessions? The Moon plays a massive role in what we can capture.
Here’s what’s happening this month:
First Quarter
May 4
Deep-sky imaging is best after midnight.
Also great for capturing lunar surface details with strong shadows along the terminator.
Full Moon
May 12
The Full Moon in May 2025, is known as the Flower Moon.
Last Quarter
May 20
Deep-sky imaging is best in the first half of the night before the Moon rises in the early morning hours.
New Moon
May 27
The darkest skies of the month arrive with the New Moon, ideal for deep-sky imaging.
May 2025 MAP
(Moonlight Astrophotography Planner)
Each month, the MAP — or Moonlight Astrophotography Planner — helps you choose the best nights for capturing galaxies, nebulae, and nightscapes. Whether you’re shooting broadband or narrowband, MAP gives you clear guidance based on the Moon phase, so you can match your imaging plans to the sky conditions.
This month, the Eta Aquariids meteor shower is included in the planner as well — peaking around May 5–6 in the early morning hours.
You can download this month’s MAP as a free PDF using the button below. It’s updated monthly to help you make the most of your imaging time, no matter your style or setup.
Meteor Showers – May 2025
The Eta Aquariids peak on the morning of May 5–6, and are best seen before dawn, especially under dark skies.
They’re known for being fast and bright, with longer-lasting trails than many other showers. While they’re not as famous as the Perseids or Geminids, they can still put on an impressive show — especially in the Southern Hemisphere, where hourly rates can reach 30 to 50 meteors. In the north, numbers are lower, but still worth a look if you’re already out for Milky Way imaging.
The Eta Aquariids come from the dust trail of Halley’s Comet — fragments of its ancient tail burning up in Earth’s atmosphere as our planet crosses its orbital path each May.
You’ll also find this shower included in the Moonlight Astrophotography Planner (MAP) — to help you time your sessions around both moonlight and meteor activity.
2024 Perseids with Aurora Borealis
Nightscape Opportunities
With the winter Milky Way gone, all focus shifts to the summer arc and its bright, detailed core.
In the northern hemisphere, you’ll need to wait until the small hours to catch it rising — but in the south, the Milky Way now stretches high across the sky, rich with detail from horizon to zenith.
It’s a great month to scout foregrounds, frame up panoramas, or even try for a full Milky Way arch. A strong foreground can elevate a nightscape image from good to unforgettable — whether it’s a tree, rock formation, ruin, or skyline.
For best results, check the Moonlight Astrophotography Planner (MAP) to find the darkest hours of the month.
