Overview
- The Moon reaches its new phase at 00:47 Central Mexico time (06:47 GMT) on November 20, producing exceptionally dark skies.
- Optimal observing is expected the nights of November 19–20 depending on local time conversions, cloud cover and light pollution.
- Faint targets favored by the darkness include the Milky Way, the Andromeda galaxy, prominent star clusters and potentially Comet Lemmon (C/2025 A6).
- Observers should travel to dark sites, allow about 20 minutes for night‑vision adaptation, dress for the cold and, if possible, use binoculars or a telescope.
- This is a normal, safe astronomical event that frames a busy sky calendar featuring the recent Leonids peak, Uranus at opposition on November 21 and a Venus–Mercury conjunction on November 24–25.