69
Tonight
Good conditions
Worth setting up, with a little selectivity · 21:00–06:00
Columbus

Stargazing forecast for tonight

Fri, 18 Sept 2026 · Your current location · 242 m
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Forecast sky illustrationLoading current conditions…
Tonight’s hourly scores · 21:00–06:00
Best window21:00–06:00
How this sky is built · forecast illustration, not a camera

Positions follow the time selected below the sky at your chosen location. Back to now restores the current sky. Cloud amount, humidity-based transparency and a seeing proxy come from the forecast; light pollution comes from the 2020 skyglow model. Cloud placement and screen brightness are illustrative, not calibrated images or a satellite map. A marker means above the horizon, not guaranteed visible. Aerosol, smoke, local obstructions and telescope performance are not directly measured here.

Current sky positions update each minute; a selected preview stays at its labelled time. Forecast inputs refresh every five minutes while this page is visible. The headline score and hourly scores describe tonight, separately from the sky explorer.

Site darkness · separate from tonight's score
Bright urban skyModelled moonless zenith brightness; target choice matters more as the sky brightens.
18.0–18.8 mag/arcsec²
Visual guide
ClearTransparencySoftSeeing
Transparency vs seeingSee the difference →
A darker option

Cherry Springs State Park

475 km away · Threatened dark sky · 21.6–21.8 mag/arcsec²

47conditions tonight
See the trade-off →