The new moon will see dark skies for the peak of the Orionid meteor shower, while three days later the young moon will pass in front of the red star Antares for observers in South America and the Falklands.

A new moon phase happens when the sun and moon are on the same line drawn from one celestial pole to the other. The exact moment of this month's full moon occurs on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 8:25 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (1225 UTC), according to the U.S. Naval Observatory.

Usually the moon appears to be above or below the sun as seen from Earth – its shadow "misses" our planet – but about twice a year the two are lined up just right so that we see a solar eclipse, the only time a new moon is visible. (The next solar eclipse is on Feb. 17, 2026, and will be visible from Antarctica). This

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