Astrophotography in September 2026: get your camera ready for the equinox auroras and a final glimpse of the Milky Way’s core

Milky way, Switzerland — (Image credit: Getty Images)

September 2026 marks a turning point for astrophotographers in the Northern Hemisphere. After months of short nights, darkness returns quickly after sunset, bringing longer and more comfortable observing windows. At the same time, the Milky Way’s bright core begins to slip away from the evening sky, making this a final opportunity to capture it until next spring. The month also features the equinox — often a time of auroral activity at northern latitudes — and the warm glow of the Harvest Moon.

Here’s everything you need to know about astrophotography in September 2026:

September 3: Moon and Pleiades

Look to the northeast just before midnight, and you'll see the Pleiades, a familiar sight of the winter night sky. Tonight, it will be flanked to the lower left by a 54%-lit waning gibbous moon.

September 4-15: Dark sky window

Silhouette of a man looking at the Milky Way Stars shining above the Grand Canyon of Thailand (Sam Phan Bok) — (Image credit: Suchart Kuathan / Getty Images)

With new moon on September 10, the preceding week offers some of the darkest skies since spring. This is your final realistic opportunity in 2026 to capture the Milky Way’s core in the evening sky from mid-northern latitudes. Look southeast after dusk to find the brightest region low on the horizon, gradually sinking earlier each night. A wide-angle lens, fast aperture (f/2.8), ISO 1600–3200 and exposures of 10-20 seconds will capture the structure of the Milky Way, though a star tracker will reveal extra detail.

Read: The best star tracker camera mounts

September 7: Moon and Mars

Are you ready for a couple of very early starts? Rise an hour before sunset today, and you’ll have a chance to capture a beautiful 19%-lit waning crescent moon just a few degrees from Mars. Shining in the northeast, they’ll be close to Castor and Pollux, the two brightest stars in the constellation Gemini.

Read: When to photograph the moon

September 8: Moon, the Beehive Cluster and Jupiter

A delicate 11%-lit waning crescent moon will this morning sit across one of the most beautiful open clusters of stars in the night sky. The Beehive Cluster is a cluster of around 1,000 stars in the constellation Cancer. Below the pair will be Jupiter, shining brightly.

Read: 10 must-shoot events for astrophotographers in 2026

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https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/photo/traditional-rorbu-during-the-northern-lights-royalty-free-image/1618263208

CAPTION: The Northern Lights often surge around the equinox. (Image credit: Roberto Moiola / Sysaworld via Getty Images)

Tuesday, 22 September: Equinox and aurora

Aurora Borealis over snowcapped mountains and fishermen cabins by the sea, Sommaroy, Troms og Finnmark, Norway — (Image credit: Getty Images)

The September equinox marks the official start of autumn or fall in the Northern Hemisphere and brings nearly equal day and night. For astrophotographers, it signals the return of longer nights, but it’s also the perfect time for heightened auroral activity. Sure, you can wait for unusually high activity that produces faint aurora above the U.K. or U.S., but if you’re set on actually seeing the Northern Lights, consider a trip to the auroral oval, where aurora is very common after dark. Head to the Arctic Circle in Alaska, northern Canada or northern Scandinavia (Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland).

Read: Northern Lights photography: tips and techniques for stunning images

September 26: Full ‘Harvest Moon’ rises

The rising Full Moon of September 9, 2022, the Harvest Moon for 2022, coming up over a rolling harvested prairie field near home in southern Alberta, on a very clear evening.This is a composite of 11 exposures blended with Lighter Color mode onto the base layer exposure of the Moon just coming up and the sky and ground. The subsequent exposures were shot at increasingly shorter shutter speeds to preserve the colour and brightness of the Moon's disk (ie. exposing for the Moon not the sky or ground). Shot at 1 minute intervals, but exposures taken every 3 minutes were selected for the composite except at the start when atmospheric refraction makes the Moon rise faster than it does later in the sequence. All were shot with the Canon R5 and RF70-200mm lens at 200mm. — Sequence shot at 1 minute intervals, but exposures taken every 3 minutes were selected for the composite, except at the start, when atmospheric refraction makes the Moon rise faster than it does later in the sequence. All were shot with the Canon R5 and RF 70-200mm f/4 L lens at 200mm. (Image credit: Getty Images)

September’s full moon is the Harvest Moon, the full moon closest to the equinox. Although tonight is the best night to capture it (not least because it’s very close to Saturn), it actually rises close to sunset for several nights in a row, making it ideal for repeated attempts at moonrise photography. As always, the best time to shoot is at moonrise, when the moon appears largest and most colorful. Use a long lens (200–600mm) to capture detail or incorporate a foreground subject for scale. Do some rigorous sun and moon planning to capture it.

Read: How to photograph the full moon

Astrophotography shot of the month: Zodiacal light

Phu Chi Fa is about 1628 meters above sea level, with a line extending toward the cliff Laos. It is the highest peak in the valleys. Doi Pha Mon side adjoining Laos. Phu Chi Fa resembles a cliff headlands to the sky, so-called Phu Fah by a mountain pointed to the sky with a tall mountain at an angle of 45 degrees on a flat area to stroll around. 1 kilometer front, a high cliff overlooking the village of Chiang Tong in Laos. — The zodiacal light becomes visible again before dawn around the equinox. (Image credit: Getty Images)

Mid-September brings an opportunity to image the famed zodiacal light. In the days around the equinox, look east before dawn for a faint triangular glow rising from the horizon. It’s sunlight scattered by dust between Mars and Jupiter.

The best time to capture it will be any clear night from around September 9-22. However, you will need a very dark site — use a light pollution map or find a Dark Sky Place. Once in position, capture is the same as for the Milky Way: use a wide-angle lens on a tripod, ISO 1600-3200, and exposures of 15-25 seconds. Zodiacal light is subtle, but your camera will find it. Just don’t forget about composition.

• The best lenses for astrophotography

• The best star tracker camera mounts

Jamie has been writing about photography, astronomy, astro-tourism and astrophotography for over 20 years, producing content for Forbes.com, Space.com, Live Science, Techradar, T3, BBC Wildlife, Science Focus, New Scientist, Sky & Telescope, BBC Sky At Night, South China Morning Post, The Guardian, The Telegraph and Travel+Leisure.

As the editor of When Is The Next Eclipse and author of A Stargazing Program For Beginners, he has a wealth of experience, expertise and enthusiasm for astrophotography, from capturing the Northern Lights, the moon and meteor showers to solar and lunar eclipses.

He also brings a great deal of knowledge on action cameras, 360 cameras, AI cameras, camera backpacks, telescopes, gimbals, tripods and all manner of photography equipment.