Earth: Autumn Equinox was on the 23rd September.

The Moon is at Perigee on the 26th October 12:56.4 UT, and at apogee on the 13th, at 11:04.4 UT. The Moon is 1.1 degrees from the M44 Beehive cluster in Cancer on the 5th..The Moon is 1.0 degree from the M45 open cluster (the Pleiades), on the 28th.

Mars: at magnitude 0.1 starts the month in the constellation Gemini. The planet is best seen from 22.1h - 6.5h. Mars apparent diameter grows to 10 arcsec on the 5th. The Moon is 5 degrees from the planet on the 2nd. Mars is only 0.9 degrees from the M35 open cluster in Gemini, on the 3rd.
(On October 1st, RA= 6h03m23s Dec=+23°21.9' (J2000) Distance=0.966AU Elongation= 97° Phase k=86% Diameter=9.7")

Jupiter: is still bright at magnitude -2.0 in the constellation Ophiuchus and close to the bright star, Antares. The planet is best seen from 18.7h -21.1h. The Moon is close, 5 degrees, to Jupiter, on the 16th.
(On October 1st, RA=16h51m44s Dec=-22°09.9' (J2000) Distance=5.604AU Elongation= 66°)
The planet Jupiter is a source of huge radio storms. Click the link to hear the live audio stream.
The radio outbursts are in the frequency range 18 - 32 MHz. Sensitive receivers translate Jupiter's radio waves to audio sounds.
For alternative listening site.
for Great RedSpot Transit times.
Check forum for Satellite predictions.

Saturn: at magnitude 0.7 sits in the constellation Leo. The planet is 3 degrees south of Venus on the 15th.
The planet is best seen from 3.8h - 6.5h.
(On October 1st, RA=10h23m04s Dec=+11°32.5' (J2000) Distance=10.054AU Elongation= 34°)
for interactive Saturn moon calculator .

Uranus is in the constellation Aquarius, near Lambda Aquarii, magnitude 3.7. Uranus at magnitude 5.7, has a bluish-green hue and appears 3.7 arcseconds wide. The planet is best seen from 20.1h - 4.5h. The Moon is 1.7 degrees from the planet on the 23rd.
This month the planet is located 1.5 degrees away from the 4th magnitude star Phi Aquarii.
(On October 1st, RA=23h08m53s Dec= -6°21.3' (J2000) Distance=19.159AU Elongation=158°)

Neptune: in the constellation Capricornus less than 3 degrees northeast of the 4.3 mag star Iota Capricornii. A telescope will usually show a tiny bluish dot, only 2.5 arcseconds wide (mag 7.9). Neptune is best seen from 21.1h -22.7h. Neptune is stationary: Getting Prograde in the 31st. The Moon is 1.3 degrees from the planet on the 21th.
(On October 1st, RA=21h27m33s Dec=-15°16.8' (J2000) Distance=29.375AU Elongation=131°)

Pluto is in the constellation Sagittarius (mag 13.9) is not visible in the southern sky this month. Normally, a finder chart is necessary to help in identifying the 0.1" diameter dwarf planet. The dwarf planet is best seen from 20.7h - 5.1h.
(On October 1st, RA=17h44m48s Dec=-16°47.7' (J2000) Distance=31.524AU Elongation= 79°)

The Sun enters the zodiac sign Scorpio on the 23rd October, 20:15 UT.

Asteroid 2 Pallas is stationary on the 22nd.

to download Northern Hemisphere Major Events file in Distant Suns.
to download Southern Hemisphere Major Events file in Distant Suns.

Meteor Showers

There are many minor meteor showers this month...
Orionids produce rates of 5-15/hour with occasional surges in activity that may reach 25 or even 50/hour. The shower's radiant near Betelgeuse is best-placed just before morning twilight begins. Its radiant is R.A. 6hr 20m Dec +16 degrees, which is close to Xi Orionis. They`re from Halley's Comet. October 15-29 2003 Maximum Oct. 21.
Draconids have produced two major storms in 1933 and 1946, and several other significant outbursts. Draconids are very slow meteors. The parent body of the meteors is Comet Giacobini-Zinner. October 6-10, Maximum Oct. 9/10
Epsilon Geminids On the 18th, the radiant will be at RA 6h 48m, Dec +27, several degrees north of the star epsilon Gemini, (Mebsuta). These are fast meteors, at about 70 km per second. These meteors might be associated with either Comet Ikeya, C/1964 N1, or Comet Nishikawa-Takamizawa-Tago, C/1987 B1. ZHR rates for this shower are about 2 meteors per hour at maximum. October 10-27 Maximum Oct. 18/19
The Sextanids are active September 9 through October 9. Though, this one is more of a radio/radar shower
The northern Taurids and southern Taurids start to become active about October 1st, but do not reach maximums until early November. Both have fairly slow meteors, with the northern Taurids velocity at 29 km per second, and the southern at 27 km per second. At maximum in November, both showers will peak at about ZHR rates of 5 meteors per hour. These meteors are part of the Taurid stream which in turn has been associated with Comet Encke.
You can listen to them by tuning to the 67 MHz meteor radar in Roswell, NM.

Shower	Activity Period	Maximum	Radiant		Velocity	ZHR
		Date	R.A.	Dec.	km/s
Orionids		Oct 21	6h20m	16°		25
Sextantids	Sept 24-Oct 9	Oct 2	10.5h	-8.7°	29.8km/s	9
Eta Cetids	Sept 20-Nov 2	Oct. 1-5	38°	3°
October Cygnids	Sept 22-Oct 11	Oct. 4-9
Arietids	Sept-Oct	Oct 8/9
Delta Aurigids	from Sept 22-Oct	Oct. 6-15			64km/s	23
Draconids	October 6-10	Oct. 9/10	17.8h	78.1°	28.7km/s	35
Epsilon Geminids	October 10-27	Oct. 18/19	6h48m	27°	66km/s	2
Leo Minorids
Northern Piscids						3
The Sextanids	Sept 9-Oct 9
Northern Taurids	Oct 1 - Nov	November	3.2h	17.5°	29km/s	5
Southern Taurids	Oct 1 - Nov	November			27km/s	5
	for UK (A.Smith)	Radio Meteor Observation Station Track

Date    TT    R. A. (2000) Decl.     Delta      r     Elong.  Phase   m1 
2007 09 27    11 55.28   +27 58.8    1.595    0.877    29.6    34.4  10.4
2007 10 02    12 11.74   +27 36.5    1.440    0.782    31.2    41.6   9.7
2007 10 07    12 32.23   +26 46.7    1.277    0.686    32.3    51.0   8.9
2007 10 12    12 58.53   +24 59.7    1.109    0.594    32.2    63.6   8.0
2007 10 17    13 32.90   +21 13.2    0.944    0.509    30.3    80.6   6.9
2007 10 22    14 16.80   +13 34.6    0.801    0.442    25.7   102.5   6.0
2007 10 27    15 06.90   +00 23.5    0.721    0.405    20.4   121.4   5.4
2007 11 01    15 53.05   -15 42.3    0.739    0.412    21.8   116.3   5.5

	Realtime sun

All credits to Distant Suns, the Astronomy program.

Highlights

Halloween, the word itself, is a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. It actually has its origins in the Celtic New Year. The holiday was called Samhain (Sah-ween). The date marked the beginning of winter. The Celts believed that at the time of Samhain, more so than any other time of the year, the ghosts of the dead were able to mingle with the living, because at Samhain the souls of those who had died during the year travelled into the other world. People gathered to sacrifice animals, fruits, and vegetables. They also lit bonfires in honour of the dead, to aid them on their journey. Here are a few deepsky objects to look out for:

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