SKY · DEEP-SKY · USA
Deep-Sky Objects Tonight — Phoenix
Tonight from Phoenix, the best-placed deep-sky showpiece is Ring Nebula (M57), riding about 90° up in the south-eastern sky. Here's the full list of galaxies, nebulae and clusters worth hunting from Phoenix tonight — and how dark a sky each one needs.
A modest Moon — bright planets and constellations are fine, faint detail less so.
Best placed over Phoenix tonight
Ranked by how high each climbs in tonight's dark sky from Phoenix. The higher an object is, the less atmosphere you look through — and the better it shows.
A tiny, perfect smoke ring — the glowing shell of a dying star; a small-telescope favourite. In Lyra.
A bright planetary nebula, an easy and rewarding binocular and small-scope target. In Vulpecula.
The finest globular cluster for northern observers — a fuzzy ball of hundreds of thousands of stars. In Hercules.
A compact, bright autumn globular cluster, easy to find off the Great Square of Pegasus. In Pegasus.
The nearest big galaxy — a faint elongated smudge to the naked eye from a dark sky, the most distant thing most people ever see unaided. In Andromeda.
A dense, rich open cluster shaped like a flight of ducks — lovely in binoculars. In Scutum.
Home of the famous "Pillars of Creation"; the surrounding cluster is an easy binocular sight. In Serpens.
A face-on spiral with a companion — its spiral arms are visible in a modest telescope from a dark site. In Canes Venatici.
A large, low-surface-brightness spiral — needs a genuinely dark, Moonless sky, then rewarding in binoculars. In Triangulum.
A bright spring globular with half a million stars — a fine binocular and small-scope target. In Canes Venatici.
One of the brightest globular clusters, low in the south for northern observers. In Sagittarius.
A delicate nebula split by dark dust lanes, near the Lagoon in the rich Sagittarius star fields. In Sagittarius.
A bright nebula in the heart of the Milky Way — superb in binoculars from a dark southern-sky view. In Sagittarius.
A bright spiral galaxy near the Big Dipper, paired with M82 in the same binocular field. In Ursa Major.
A bright, sprawling star cluster low in the southern Milky Way — naked-eye from dark skies. In Scorpius.
A tight, bright knot of blue stars — obvious to the naked eye, dazzling in binoculars. In Taurus.
An edge-on galaxy with a dark dust lane like a hat brim — a small-telescope classic. In Virgo.
Out of reach from Phoenix tonight
These showpieces are either below Phoenix's horizon during tonight's dark hours, or never rise from this latitude at all — useful to know before you go looking.
Phoenix right now
Faint galaxies and nebulae need a genuinely dark, cloudless, Moonless sky — a quick check of tonight's cloud cover and the stargazing verdict for Phoenixtells you whether it's worth the trip out of town.
More sky over Phoenix
SEE IT ON THE MAP
Watch the day/night line over Phoenix to plan your dark-sky window.