Overview
- The global celebration is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 19, and NASA is urging people to join in-person gatherings, virtual events or solo observing using its searchable event map and registration tool.
- Organizers chose the first-quarter Moon because the terminator, the line between lunar day and night, casts long shadows that make craters and mountains easier to see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.
- NASA and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter program are supplying resources for the event, including Moon maps, the Moon Trek interactive map, and recent Artemis II and LRO imagery to guide observers.
- Observers get an added skywatching opportunity when Venus reaches its peak evening brightness on Friday, Sept. 18, offering an easy second target low in the western sky after sunset.
- The event is designed to boost public interest in lunar science and exploration, and NASA Goddard will host activities and talks that connect hands-on observing to current Artemis-era missions and lunar research.