ermetikon

Lunar Phase

New Moon

The New Moon marks the conjunction of the Sun and Moon, the moment when the Moon is rendered invisible, consumed by the Sun's rays and stripped of reflected light. Classical astrologers considered the Moon in this condition to be at its weakest: combust, without influence, and incapable of reflecting the solar light that gives it power.

At a glance

New Moon meaning in the current sky

Beginnings stay hidden, internal, and formative. The conjunction seeds the cycle even while the Moon is at its weakest.

Current sky

Last Quarter in Pisces

New Moon is not active right now; the Moon is currently in Pisces.

Next exact occurrence: Apr 17, 2026, 11:52 AM UTC

Elongation range

0 to 45 deg

Measured from the Sun, with illumination running from 0% to 15%.

Best used for

The conjunction seeds the cycle even while the Moon is at its weakest.

The Moon conjoins the Sun, becoming invisible and combust. Classical doctrine regards this as the weakest lunar condition - the Moon is without light, applying to the Sun, and incapable of reflecting its rays.

Caution

Watch the new moon build in Aries

Do not overstate certainty while the Moon is combust and without light.

Visual geometry

New Moon geometry

A visual anchor for where this phase sits in the solar-lunar cycle.

0 deg conjunction
Sun
Moon
0 deg
90 deg
180 deg
270 deg

Solar side

Sun as the source of light and the fixed reference for lunar elongation.

Lunar side

New Moon as a representative lunar position in the cycle.

Local personalization

Local timing for the New Moon

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Last Quarter in Pisces

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Featured local timings

Next New Moon

Apr 17, 2026, 11:52 AM UTC

New Moon in Aries.

In classical astrology, the New Moon is not merely a beginning - it is a moment of profound lunar weakness. The Moon conjoins the Sun, entering what Lilly and his predecessors called combustion: a condition in which the planet's own signification is overwhelmed and obscured by the Sun's superior rays.

This does not make the New Moon malefic in itself, but it does mean that any chart or election made under a combust Moon carries the mark of weakness, confusion, or things hidden from view. The Moon cannot reflect what it cannot see.

What makes the New Moon significant for astrologers is the precise moment it turns - the exact conjunction - after which the Moon begins its 29.5-day cycle of increasing light and eventual separation from the Sun.

Combustion and the Dark Moon

When the Moon is within 8 deg of the Sun, classical doctrine holds it to be combust - debilitated by proximity to the solar fire. At the exact New Moon, the Moon is cazimi (within 17 arcminutes), which some classical authors treat as strength rather than weakness. The two conditions bracket the conjunction itself.

Elections and the New Moon

Classical electional doctrine cautions against beginning important matters under a New Moon: the Moon's lack of light suggests hidden impediments, incomplete information, and matters that will not come fully to fruition. Traditional authors often prefer to wait until the Moon is past the Sun and increasing in light before acting.

The Cycle Begins

Despite its weakness, the New Moon marks a clean beginning. Each lunation cycle starts from this dark conjunction, and the Moon's subsequent separation from the Sun carries the energy of that beginning forward to the Full Moon.

Classical Perspectives

Primary-source passages on the new moon from the Hermetikon archive.

Cover of A Manual of Astrology

A Manual of Astrology

Raphael (Robert Cross Smith)
1828
"At the time of conjunction , or when she is between the earth and the sun, or the new moon , she is then invisible to the earth, because her enlightened side is then turned towards the sun, and her dark side towards the earth"
Page 60Open in Reader
Cover of A Manual of Astrology

A Manual of Astrology

Raphael (Robert Cross Smith)
1828
"of the infant year, is to be considered as of particular and essential force in Astrological knowledge. In former times, this lunation was with much pomp and solemnity observed as a festival, especially in the remoter ages, and by the ancient nations.—It was celebrated by the Israelites, as well as by the Pagans (which is evident from the 20th chapter of the first book of Samuel) and kept once in a year with extraordinary ceremonies. Although these superstitious observances are happily no more, yet the efficacy of the planetary motions at the New Moon, nearest to the vernal equinox , cannot be denied, and in all cases the student must well observe the horoscope for that lunation; and by examining the various configurations formed by the active or passive stars, and Astral significators, joined to the effects denoted in the vernal ingress, he will be enabled to arrive at the most perfect conclusions, relative to the destiny of that nation, for which his calculations are made"
Page 243Open in Reader

Sources on the New Moon

Open the cited books and authors behind this new moon page.

Books cited here

Manual of Astrology

Open the full book page in the archive.

Tetrabiblos

Open the full book page in the archive.

Authors cited here

Claudius Ptolemy

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New Moon in Every Sign

New Moon in Aries

Fire - Cardinal

New Moon in Taurus

Earth - Fixed

New Moon in Gemini

Air - Mutable

New Moon in Cancer

Water - Cardinal

New Moon in Leo

Fire - Fixed

New Moon in Virgo

Earth - Mutable

New Moon in Libra

Air - Cardinal

New Moon in Scorpio

Water - Fixed

New Moon in Sagittarius

Fire - Mutable

New Moon in Capricorn

Earth - Cardinal

New Moon in Aquarius

Air - Fixed

New Moon in Pisces

Water - Mutable

New Moon FAQ

What does the New Moon mean in classical astrology?

In classical astrology, the New Moon occurs when the Moon conjoins the Sun and becomes combust - stripped of reflected light. This is the Moon's weakest condition. Classical authors caution against beginning important matters under a New Moon, though it marks the start of the 29.5-day lunation cycle.

Is the New Moon good or bad in traditional astrology?

Neither simply good nor bad. The New Moon is weak - the Moon is combust, hidden, and without light. Electional astrology recommends waiting until the Moon is past the Sun and increasing in light before acting. But the New Moon also marks a genuine beginning: the start of a new lunar cycle.

What is combustion at the New Moon?

Combustion describes the Moon's condition when it is within 8 deg of the Sun. At that proximity, the Sun's rays overwhelm the Moon's own signification. At the exact New Moon, the Moon reaches cazimi - within 17 arcminutes of the Sun - which some classical authors treat as a brief moment of great strength within the weakness of combustion.

How long does the New Moon phase last?

The New Moon phase lasts approximately 2-3 days around the exact conjunction. As an elongation range, the Moon is in the new-moon phase from 0 deg to roughly 45 deg of elongation from the Sun - encompassing the conjunction itself and the immediate post-conjunction period before the first crescent becomes visible.

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