GoodSeeing Guides
Dark-sky sites

The places people actually drive to.

Observatories, reserves and parks — scored exactly the same way as everywhere else, so a trip is directly comparable to your back garden.

Choose the best season for a dark-sky trip → · Plan a Joshua Tree observing trip →

Mount Wilson Observatory · best monthsPalomar Observatory · best monthsUluru-Kata Tjuta · best monthsJoshua Tree National Park · best months
TonightSiteRegion Best windowElevation
86 Big Bend National Park Texas 21:00–07:00 1128 m 82 Kitt Peak National Observatory Arizona 20:00–01:00 2096 m 49 Mauna Kea Hawaii 03:00–06:00 4207 m 41 Grand Canyon National Park Arizona 04:00–05:00 2100 m 25 Cherry Springs State Park Pennsylvania — 701 m 14 Canyonlands National Park Utah — 1800 m 10 Death Valley National Park California — — 8 Arches National Park Utah — 1500 m 6 Great Basin National Park Nevada — 2080 m 6 Natural Bridges National Monument Utah — 1980 m 5 Joshua Tree National Park California — 900 m 0 Bryce Canyon National Park Utah — 2400 m

The rest of the list

Open any of these for tonight's forecast.

Compare seasonal opportunity · 33 sites

Ordered by historical usable nights per year, not tonight’s weather. Site darkness is shown separately, never multiplied into a proprietary score. A usable night means at least three astronomical-dark hours and regional NASA nighttime cloud ≤30%; it does not certify seeing or site access.

24 · historical opportunity

Mauna Kea

23 usable nights/year
Strongest month: October
Natural-dark sky · 21.9–21.9 mag/arcsec²

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Regional climate is not campsite weather. Check access, opening hours and permits with the site operator before travelling.

Is the drive worth it?

The only question that matters. Put a site next to your back garden and read both timelines against each other.

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