For one evening, simply lifting your gaze will make you feel a little closer to space: Saturday, September 19, 2026 returns the International Observe the Moon Night, the NASA-promoted event inviting everyone to rediscover the Moon through observations, encounters, and experiences open to all, including those who have never looked through a telescope.
In Italy the initiative is coordinated by the Italian Union of Amateur Astronomers and it is the perfect opportunity to discover evocative places with eyes turned to the sky, among sea-facing terraces, gardens and observatories, excursions and evenings with amateur astronomers.
The period, in fact, is particularly favorable: near the First Quarter, the Moon reveals details that are less evident at full Moon. We have selected six unmissable events in Italy to admire it from another vantage point.
In La Spezia, the Moon Meets Fantasy
For one evening, the journey to the Moon begins in the heart of La Spezia. On Saturday, September 19, from 8:00 PM, the Public Gardens area near the Garibaldi statue becomes a meeting point between science and imagination thanks to an event included in the La Spezia Fantasy program. Claudio Cosci, from the NASA STEAM Gateway, will recount the Artemis missions, the new space vehicles and the projects for bringing humans back to the Moon. Then the telescopes will take the stage: through optical instruments and digital systems, adults and children will be able to observe up close the craters, seas and lunar reliefs.
In Ravenna, Among Telescopes and False Myths
In Ravenna the evening starts at 19:00 in the gardens in front of the city’s Planetarium, located at Viale Santi Baldini 4/A, with telescopes pointed at the Moon. At 21:00, Stregati dalla Luna – Di nuovo tra le stelle guides the audience through truths and false astronomical beliefs together with Daria Dall’Olio, Stefano Marcellini and the CICAP. Participation is by voluntary contribution.
In Santa Marinella, with the Sea in the Background
A terrace overlooking the sea becomes a vantage point for the sky: at the Lido di Santa Marinella facility, on September 19 from 8:00 PM to around midnight, the Astronomical Association of Civitavecchia offers its telescopes. The event is free, and alongside the Moon another protagonist will be Saturn, with its unmistakable rings.
In Cortino, Among the Monti della Laga
In Cortino, in the heart of the Monti della Laga, the experience begins while still light. Moon Landscapes of the Laga unites hikes, conviviality and astronomical observation with the Teramo Amateur Astronomers Union: after crossing the mountainous landscape, participants will be able to recognize through the telescopes the craters, seas and mountain chains of our Satellite.
In Conversano, from Apollo to Artemis
In Puglia the celebration takes place on Sunday, September 20, at the “Chicxulub” Asteroid Observatory of Conversano. At 19:00, journalist and spaceflight essayist Antonio Lo Campo will recount the past and future of lunar exploration in the conference Apollo and Artemis: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow on the Moon. From 20:00 the observations then begin. Registration is mandatory and a contribution of 5 euros is requested.
In Isnello, Under the Sky of the Madonie
Those who want to turn the evening into a small astronomical journey can reach the GAL Hassin in Isnello, in the Madonie. At the International Center for the Astronomical Sciences you can choose between the Full Day experience and the night-time-only observations, leaving behind the lights of the big cities to rediscover the Moon under one of the most evocative skies in Sicily.
