SKY Β· STARGAZING Β· UK

Is Tonight Good for Stargazing in London?

Clear, dark skies tonight (about 15% cloud) with the Moon well out of the way. This is about as good as it gets β€” from a dark site away from city lights you'll see the Milky Way, faint stars, and any active meteor shower.

TONIGHT'S VERDICT Β· LONDON
VerdictExcellent β€” a great night to be out
Night cloud15%
MoonLast Quarter Β· 49%
Dark from9:15 PM
Until4:44 AM

Worth looking for: Everything: planets, constellations, the Milky Way, meteor showers and faint deep-sky objects β€” given a dark horizon.

Live cloud reading

READING TONIGHT'S SKY…

How dark is the sky over London?

Sky class (estimate)Bortle 9 Β· Inner-city sky

A Bortle 8–9 dome covering the whole metro; real dark sky needs a proper drive.

Even on the clearest, Moonless night, a bright city sky limits what you can see. For the Milky Way and faint stars from London, you'll want to reach a darker site β€” see the options below.

Darker skies within reach of London

~2 HR DRIVE SOUTHSouth Downs National ParkIDA-certified International Dark Sky Reserve.
~3.5 HR DRIVE WEST β€” A DESTINATIONExmoor National ParkEurope’s first International Dark Sky Reserve.

Dark-sky designations from the International Dark-Sky Association and well-recognised dark regions. Always check access, opening hours and the weather before travelling.

London right now

More sky over London

SEE IT ON THE MAP

Live cloud cover over London, on the full map.

Open the live map β†’