Bhanu PrakashAll Sky Notes

Sky Notes · Planning

When is the best night to go stargazing?

Why the New Moon week, a dark site and twenty minutes of patience matter more than a big telescope.

By Bhanu Prakash, astronomer · Hyderabad

The single biggest thing that decides what you will see is not your telescope. It is how dark the sky is. Here is how to pick a good night.

1. Plan around the Moon

A bright Moon lights up the whole sky and hides faint stars, nebulae and the Milky Way. The best nights are the few days either side of the New Moon, when the Moon is thin or below the horizon after dark. Around the Full Moon, the Moon is up all night, so use those evenings for the Moon itself and the bright planets instead.

The Tonight’s Sky panel on this site shows the Moon’s phase and the next New Moon dates for Hyderabad.

2. Get away from city lights

Streetlights and buildings make the sky over a city glow. From the middle of Hyderabad you will see the Moon, bright planets and a few dozen stars. Drive out to a dark spot away from the city and you can see thousands of stars, and on the darkest nights the Milky Way.

3. Check the weather, not just for rain

You need clear skies, but haze and humidity matter too. The clearest, steadiest skies around Hyderabad usually come in the dry winter months, from about November to February. Monsoon nights are often cloudy.

4. Give your eyes twenty minutes

Your eyes take about 20 to 30 minutes to adjust fully to the dark. One look at a phone screen resets much of that. Turn your screen brightness right down, or use a red torch, which keeps your night vision.

A simple checklist