MUSCAT: Oman Society of Astronomy and Space (OSAS) spotted and photographed Comet Swan (C/2025 R2 SWAN) in the skies of the Sultanate of Oman, a rare celestial event and one of the most prominent astronomical phenomena of the last quarter of 2025.
Ibrahim bin Mohammed al Mahrouqi, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of OSAS, said that the observation is part of the OSAS’s efforts to monitor and document significant astronomical events in the skies of the Sultanate of Oman. He added that the C/2025 R2 SWAN is an irregular comet originating from the outer reaches of the solar system and is characterized by a long orbital period exceeding 20,000 years, making its appearance a unique event that will not reoccur for thousands of years.
Al Mahrouqi explained that the comet was first discovered on September 11, 2025, by Ukrainian amateur astronomer Vladimir Bezugly through images captured by the SWAN (Solar Wind Anisotropies) instrument aboard the SOHO space observatory. The discovery was ascertained on the following day by astronomer Martin Macek using the FRAM telescope in Chile. The name SWAN refers to this instrument, which is used to study the solar wind and has helped discover a number of previous comets.
He noted that the comet passed its closest point to the Sun on September 12, 2025, at a distance of 0.5 astronomical units (AU), and then approached Earth on October 20, 2025, to a distance of 0.261 AU (approximately 39 million kilometres).
In early November, the comet will be visible in the constellation Aquarius as it gradually moves away from Earth, Al Mahrouqi said adding that the comet’s brightness peaked at a magnitude of 6 to 7 during October, then it will gradually decline, reaching a magnitude of 8.2 to 10.75 in November. This made it faint, requiring binoculars or a small telescope to view it from a dark sky. — ONA
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