Floyd Bennett Field: Free Stargazing, Nov 13

The Amateur Astronomers Association runs one free public session at Floyd Bennett Field each month, and November's falls on Friday the 13th, 6 to 9 p.m. No ticket and no sign-up: the page calls the night free and open to the public. Telescopes go up on the grass beside the Community Garden, inside the field at 3159 Flatbush Ave, Gateway National Recreation Area. Official info: AAA, aaa.org/event/stargazing-floyd-bennett-field/2026-11-13/ (checked Nov 1, 2026).

November 13 brings a 17 percent waxing crescent, low in the southwest at dusk and gone by 7:46 p.m. Saturn hangs 33 degrees up in the southeast as the session opens and climbs to 50 degrees due south by 9 p.m. Civil twilight ends at 5:09 p.m., so the sky keeps darkening through the first hour. Which tubes come out, and what each owner aims at, depends on who shows up that night; the line at any eyepiece moves with the crowd. Bring a warm layer, because the field is open on every side.

Take the 2 or 5 to Flatbush Av–Brooklyn College, then the Q35 toward Rockaway Park to the last stop in Brooklyn: Flatbush Av at the Floyd Bennett Field entrance, just before the toll plaza. Going back, the Q35 toward Brooklyn College boards across Flatbush Avenue at Aviation Rd and ends at Avenue H for the subway. By car, turn in at the light before the toll plaza, bear hard left about 1,000 feet in, then take the fence-line gate 0.3 mile on your left. Douse your lights at that gate and let someone guide you in; if the running lights won't switch off, park at the fence. Rain, snow, an overcast sky or snow on the ground cancels the night; AAA posts cancellations on aaa.org/calendar/.