Stargazing in Las Cruces tonight

United States · 32.31°, -106.78°

Stargazing verdict · tonight

Fair

Fair — stars visible, but not the best conditions.

›A bright full moon (100% lit) will wash out fainter stars.
›About 8 hours of true darkness to work with.

Your sky map — scrub through time

A live map of the sky above Las Cruces: the Moon, planets, bright stars and constellations, exactly where they are. Drag the sliders to move through the night — or forward and back by days — and watch everything shift.

The sky over Las Cruces

Thu 27 Aug, 22:00 · looking up — N at top, E to the left

Day

Time of night22:00

Drag the sliders to travel through time — watch the Moon, planets and constellations rise, set and shift. Positions are computed live for Las Cruces.

Tonight's sky in Las Cruces

🌕 Moon

Full Moon

100% lit

🌑 Darkness

21:03–05:14

8h of dark

🌇 Sun

sets 19:37

rises 06:39

🌙 Moon rise/set

up 19:28

down 07:04

Planets visible tonight

♂ Mars

Best early hours · toward the E · 34° up

♄ Saturn

Best early hours · toward the SW · 53° up

Best nights to stargaze — next two weeks

Ranked by how dark the sky will be (less Moon = better). Pair with a clear-sky forecast on the night.

Fri 28 Aug

28 Aug

100% moon

Sat 29 Aug

29 Aug

99% moon

Sun 30 Aug

30 Aug

95% moon

Mon 31 Aug

31 Aug

89% moon

Tue 1 Sept

1 Sept

82% moon

Wed 2 Sept

2 Sept

72% moon

Thu 3 Sept

3 Sept

62% moon

Fri 4 Sept

4 Sept

50% moon

Sat 5 Sept

5 Sept

39% moon

Sun 6 Sept

6 Sept

28% moon

Mon 7 Sept

7 Sept

18% moon

Tue 8 Sept

8 Sept

10% moon

Wed 9 Sept

9 Sept

4% moon

Thu 10 Sept

10 Sept

1% moon

Upcoming sky events from Las Cruces

28 August

Partial lunar eclipse

A partial lunar eclipse on 28 August, with part of the full Moon dimming and reddening as it enters Earth's shadow. Visible from the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia depending on your local moonrise/moonset.

4 October

Saturn at opposition

Saturn reaches opposition on 4 October — directly opposite the Sun, so it rises at sunset, sets at sunrise and is at its biggest and brightest of the year. The best night to catch the rings through even a small telescope.

26 September · lesser-known

Neptune at opposition

The most distant planet reaches opposition on 26 September — its brightest for the year, though still faint. A rewarding challenge target: Neptune shows as a tiny blue-grey disc through a telescope. One for the keen.

14 December

Geminid meteor shower

Widely considered the best shower of the year: slow, bright, often colourful meteors at up to ~150 per hour under dark skies. In 2026 the Moon is only a young crescent at the 13–14 December peak, so conditions are excellent.

21 October · lesser-known

Orionid meteor shower

Fast, faint meteors — debris from Halley's Comet — peaking around 21 October at ~20 per hour. A quieter, connoisseur's shower; moonlight hampers the 2026 peak, so aim for the darkest hours.

Moon phase for Las Cruces →All sky events

Stargazing in Las Cruces — FAQ

Is tonight good for stargazing in Las Cruces?

Fair — stars visible, but not the best conditions. A bright full moon (100% lit) will wash out fainter stars. Check the live cloud forecast above, which updates through the day.

What planets are visible from Las Cruces tonight?

Tonight you can spot Mars, Saturn above the horizon from Las Cruces, conditions permitting.

When is the best night to stargaze in Las Cruces soon?

The darkest upcoming night is around Thu 10 Sept, when the Moon is only 1% lit.

Times are local to Las Cruces (America/Denver). Astronomical data is computed from established models; the cloud forecast is live from Open-Meteo and refreshes through the day. Always confirm with a live forecast before travelling to a dark-sky site.