81° UPAndromedathe Chained Princess
Looknorth-eastern sky
Anchor starAlpheratz
How to know itHome to the Andromeda Galaxy — the most distant thing visible to the naked eye, a faint smudge on a dark night.
SKY · CONSTELLATIONS · USA
Constellations Visible Tonight — Houston
Tonight over Houston, 8 of the bright, easy-to-spot constellations climb high into a dark sky. Here's what's up, how high, and which way to face.
DARK-SKY WINDOW TONIGHT · HOUSTON
Dark by9:18 PM
Until6:38 AM
High up now8
Never rise here8
Altitudes computed for Houston (29.8°, -95.4°) during tonight's dark hours.
High in the sky over Houston tonight
80° UPPegasusthe Winged Horse
Looksouthern sky
Anchor starMarkab
How to know itThe "Great Square" of Pegasus is a big, easy autumn signpost high in the eastern sky.
67° UPCygnusthe Swan / the Northern Cross
Looknorth-western sky
Anchor starDeneb
How to know itA great cross of stars flying down the summer Milky Way, with brilliant Deneb at its tail.
59° UPCassiopeiathe Queen
Looknorthern sky
Anchor starSchedar
How to know itA bright "W" or "M" of five stars, circling the north pole opposite the Big Dipper — useful for finding north.
53° UPPerseusthe Hero
Looknorth-eastern sky
Anchor starMirfak
How to know itA rich slice of the Milky Way and the radiant of the August Perseid meteor shower.
51° UPLyrathe Lyre
Looknorth-western sky
Anchor starVega
How to know itSmall but led by Vega, one of the brightest stars in the sky and a corner of the Summer Triangle.
49° UPAquilathe Eagle
Looksouth-western sky
Anchor starAltair
How to know itBright Altair completes the Summer Triangle with Vega and Deneb, straddling the celestial equator.
35° UPTaurusthe Bull
Lookeastern sky
Anchor starAldebaran
How to know itMarked by orange Aldebaran and the tiny, sparkling Pleiades star cluster on the Bull’s shoulder.
“Up” is the highest the centre of each pattern gets above the horizon tonight — your fist at arm's length spans about 10°. Directions are where to face when it's best placed.
Low on the horizon from Houston
These clear the horizon but stay low, so trees and buildings may hide them: Sagittarius (~18°, south-western) · Orion (~12°, eastern) · Gemini (~6°, north-eastern).
Out of reach from Houston
At Houston's latitude these never climb above the horizon, so you can't see them from here at any time of year: Ursa Major, Boötes, Scorpius, Canis Major, Carina, Leo, Centaurus, Crux. To catch them, you'd need to travel toward the Southern Hemisphere.
Houston right now
More sky over Houston
SEE IT ON THE MAP
The live sky map shows the day/night line over Houston in real time.