Next New Moon:
The next new moon and the darkest nights of the month
New moon is the start of the lunar month and the best time of the month for stargazing: with the Moon beside the Sun in the daytime sky, the nights around it are moonless from dusk to dawn. The next dark-sky window runs October 5 to October 13.
Exact new moon (times shown in UTC until your browser converts them)
- Moonless evenings
- Oct 5 to Oct 13
- Distance
- 387,643 km
- Type
- Average distance
Plan the moonless nights with the meteor shower calendar and check moonrise and moonset for your city on the moon calendar.
About the new moon
At new moon the Moon lies between Earth and the Sun, and the side facing us is unlit. It rises and sets with the Sun, so it cannot be seen except during a solar eclipse. The new moon is the reference point of the lunar month: the Moon's age is counted in days from this instant, and 29.53 days later the cycle repeats.
Because the sky is free of moonlight all night, the nights around new moon are the best of the month for the Milky Way, faint deep-sky objects and meteor showers.
Lore
Many cultures began their months at the first sighting of the thin crescent after new moon; the Islamic, Hebrew and traditional Chinese calendars still do. In folklore the dark of the moon was a time for endings and beginnings: seeds planted, debts settled, hair cut so it would grow back thick.
A wish made at the first glimpse of the new crescent was said to come true, and turning the silver coins in your pocket at that moment invited money to follow.
Trivia
- The exact instant of new moon is the same everywhere on Earth; only the clock time differs.
- Two new moons in one calendar month are sometimes called a Black Moon, the dark twin of the Blue Moon.
- Solar eclipses can only happen at new moon, but most new moons pass above or below the Sun because the Moon's orbit is tilted about 5 degrees.
- The 'old moon in the new moon's arms', a faint glow on the dark part of a young crescent, is earthshine: sunlight reflected off Earth.
New moon calendar 2026
| New moon (UTC) | Moonless evenings | Distance | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 13 to Jan 21 | 395,420 km | ||
| Feb 12 to Feb 20 | 384,497 km | Annular solar eclipse | |
| Mar 14 to Mar 22 | 373,326 km | ||
| Apr 12 to Apr 20 | 364,194 km | ||
| May 11 to May 19 | 358,594 km | Supermoon | |
| Jun 10 to Jun 18 | 357,221 km | Supermoon | |
| Jul 9 to Jul 17 | 360,154 km | ||
| Aug 7 to Aug 15 | 366,958 km | Total solar eclipse | |
| Sep 6 to Sep 14 | 376,654 km | ||
| Oct 5 to Oct 13 | 387,643 km | ||
| Nov 4 to Nov 12 | 397,773 km | ||
| Dec 4 to Dec 12 | 404,687 km |
Why the new moon matters for stargazing
Moonlight is the brightest source of light pollution in the sky, and unlike streetlights you cannot drive away from it. A full Moon washes out the Milky Way and hides all but the brightest meteors. Around new moon the sky is as dark as your location allows all night long, which is why astronomers, astrophotographers and meteor watchers plan around it. The moonless evenings in the table run from about five nights before new moon, when the waning crescent rises only just before dawn, to about three nights after, when the young crescent sets soon after the Sun.
A Black Moon is the second new moon in one calendar month, the counterpart of the Blue Moon; it looks no different but is a curiosity worth noting. A supermoon new moon is a new moon near perigee, invisible like any other new moon but responsible for larger than usual spring tides. Solar eclipses can happen only at new moon, when the Moon passes exactly in front of the Sun; most months it passes above or below.