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Tonight · Sat, 10 October 2026

Tucson stargazing forecast tonight

Hourly clear-sky conditions for observing: cloud by layer, transparency, estimated seeing, moonlight and true astronomical darkness.

32.222°N 110.927°W ·757 m ·Arizona, United States

NearbyCatalina FoothillsCasas AdobesOro ValleyMaranaMore nearby
92
/100
Excellent conditions
at peak

A genuinely good night — 10 hours of clear, dark sky from 20:00.

Site darkness · peer measure
Bright skyNot multiplied into the conditions score
18.7–19.4 mag/arcsec²

The score describes tonight’s conditions. Site darkness helps you choose what to observe.

See target outlook ↓Planet observing times →
Best months at Tucson, Arizona →Moonless nights →
Tonight in context · local sky & season

October historically: 22.3 qualifying nights/month on average (2005–2024). Regional cloud and darkness history, not tonight’s probability or a comparison with the conditions score.

A qualifying historical night has at least 3 hours of astronomical darkness and mean nighttime cloud ≤30%. This does not measure steady air or target visibility. Seasonal history →

Saturn: about 9.0h above 20° during this observing night’s darkness. Longest sampled dark-time opportunity among our four planet targets; not a weather ranking. Planet times →

Position calculations use roughly 20-minute samples. Clouds, skyglow and local obstructions still matter. Milky Way timing →

Best window
20:00 – 06:00
Window quality
74 / 100 avg
Astronomical dark
20:00 – 06:00
Moon
New moon, 1%
Transparency at peak
0.94
Seeing at peak (est.)
0.82
Visual limit (modelled)
4.0–5.5 mag
Tonight's limiting factor
Nothing much

No single factor is holding this night back. Go out.

The night, hour by hour

Colour = score · Luminance = everything else
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
47
87
90
92
54
71
79
74
70
63
61
Score
BEST WINDOW · 11 H
Low cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
1%
1%
5%
6%
8%
14%
20%
Mid cloud
9%
7%
9%
2%
0%
31%
15%
6%
8%
7%
10%
7%
10%
High cloud
94%
38%
0%
0%
0%
30%
11%
0%
2%
3%
6%
2%
0%
Transparency
0.84
0.95
1.00
0.96
0.94
0.93
0.89
0.80
0.75
0.66
0.59
0.56
0.56
Seeing
0.79
0.92
0.79
0.72
0.82
0.72
0.69
0.68
0.78
0.72
0.72
0.72
0.73
Moon clear
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
18
19
20
21
22
23
00
01
02
03
04
05
06
Inspect

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Score inspectorWhy this hour scored what it did Open peakClose
22 Excellent · 92/100
Starting from
100
Cloud
−1
Transparency
−2
Seeing
−4
Moonlight
−0
Darkness
−0
Score
92
CLOUD 1% LOW 0% MID 0% HIGH 0% SUN -50.4° MOON -50.0° / 1% WIND 4 TEMP 26°
Excellent 75+ Good 55+ Fair 35+ Poor 15+ Not worth it Seeing is estimated from surface wind — see how we score.

What can you actually do tonight?

This is GoodSeeing’s decision layer: the same forecast is weighted for your target and site darkness. Planetary work barely cares about moonlight; long exposures can fail on high cloud a visual observer would barely notice. Your choice is remembered on this device and becomes the default for new alert rules.

NO USABLE WINDOW FOR THIS TARGET TONIGHT

Darkness and moonlight dominate. Faint fuzzies need a genuinely dark sky more than they need steady air.

18202200020406
SITE GLOW LIMITS THIS TARGET
SET UP 18:30 · OBSERVE 19:00–06:00 · 11H · MEAN 71

Seeing is everything and moonlight is irrelevant. Bright targets punch through twilight, so darkness barely counts.

18202200020406
HIGH CLOUD CLEARS 19:00TWILIGHT BEGINS 06:00MOONLIGHT IGNORED FOR THIS TARGET
SET UP 19:30 · OBSERVE 20:00–23:00 · 3H · MEAN 44

Tolerates soft seeing, but high cloud wrecks a wide frame and moonlight raises the background everywhere.

18202200020406
HIGH CLOUD CLEARS 20:00CLOUD RETURNS 23:00SITE GLOW LIMITS FAINT TARGETS
SET UP 23:30 · OBSERVE 00:00–04:00 · 4H · MEAN 38

Needs conditions to hold still for hours. Sustained transparency matters more than any single good hour.

18202200020406
HIGH CLOUD CLEARS 00:00SITE GLOW LIMITS FAINT TARGETS
NO USABLE WINDOW FOR THIS TARGET TONIGHT

Naked eye, whole sky. Total cloud and moonlight are the only things that count.

18202200020406
SITE GLOW LIMITS THIS TARGET

Deep-sky visual is your current default.

A darker option

Kitt Peak National Observatory

70 km away · Threatened dark sky · 21.6–21.7 mag/arcsec²

82conditions tonight
See the trade-off →

The next week of nights

Tonight · 10 Oct
92
Excellent
MOON 1%
20:00–06:00
Tomorrow · 11 Oct
90
Excellent
MOON 3%
20:00–06:00
Monday · 12 Oct
86
Excellent
MOON 7%
20:00–00:00
Tuesday · 13 Oct
81
Excellent
MOON 15%
05:00–06:00
Wednesday · 14 Oct
91
Excellent
MOON 22%
23:00–00:00
Thursday · 15 Oct
100
Excellent
MOON 31%
23:00–00:00
Friday · 16 Oct
100
Excellent
MOON 40%
23:00–00:00

Open a night for its forecast times. Later forecasts may have wider time steps; missing hours are not interpolated.

Tonight · 10 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
47
87
90
92
54
71
79
74
70
63
61
Score
Low cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
1%
1%
5%
6%
8%
14%
20%
Mid cloud
9%
7%
9%
2%
0%
31%
15%
6%
8%
7%
10%
7%
10%
High cloud
94%
38%
0%
0%
0%
30%
11%
0%
2%
3%
6%
2%
0%
Transparency
0.84
0.95
1.00
0.96
0.94
0.93
0.89
0.80
0.75
0.66
0.59
0.56
0.56
Seeing
0.79
0.92
0.79
0.72
0.82
0.72
0.69
0.68
0.78
0.72
0.72
0.72
0.73
Moon clear
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
18
19
20
21
22
23
00
01
02
03
04
05
06

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Tomorrow · 11 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
61
90
85
79
72
61
65
74
74
59
47
1
Score
Low cloud
0%
1%
1%
4%
6%
10%
18%
17%
8%
4%
13%
21%
18%
45%
Mid cloud
1%
1%
2%
2%
6%
9%
13%
6%
0%
2%
13%
23%
17%
44%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
0.92
0.88
0.82
0.76
0.72
0.64
0.60
0.51
0.46
0.41
0.38
0.37
0.38
Seeing
0.58
0.75
0.87
0.91
0.92
0.90
0.90
0.94
1.00
1.00
0.99
1.00
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
3%
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
down
18
19
20
21
22
23
00
01
02
03
04
05
06
07

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Monday · 12 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
60
86
83
74
71
59
Score
Low cloud
2%
2%
2%
2%
4%
6%
15%
7%
Mid cloud
6%
10%
8%
9%
12%
13%
9%
20%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
0.98
0.92
0.83
0.71
0.69
0.39
0.96
Seeing
0.68
0.84
0.89
0.95
0.92
0.88
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
7%
7%
down
down
down
down
down
10%
18
19
20
21
22
23
05
11

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Tuesday · 13 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
44
81
Score
Low cloud
1%
34%
2%
10%
Mid cloud
73%
27%
2%
0%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
0.74
0.58
0.96
Seeing
0.80
0.97
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
12%
down
down
17%
17
23
05
11

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Wednesday · 14 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
91
82
Score
Low cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Mid cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
0.77
0.55
1.00
Seeing
0.83
1.00
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
19%
down
down
down
17
23
05
11

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Thursday · 15 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
100
92
Score
Low cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Mid cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
1.00
0.80
1.00
Seeing
0.83
1.00
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
27%
down
down
down
17
23
05
11

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Friday · 16 Oct · forecast times
Sky state
Shaded = daylight and twilight  ·  unshaded = astronomical dark
100
95
Score
Low cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Mid cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
High cloud
0%
0%
0%
0%
Transparency
1.00
1.00
0.87
1.00
Seeing
0.82
1.00
1.00
1.00
Moon clear
35%
down
down
down
17
23
05
11

Cloud tracks show clear sky — a longer bar is better. The figure inside each track is the raw measurement.

Planning a trip?

Compare the next eight weekends → · Best months to visit → · Moonless nights →

More nearby locations 8 options · openclose

About this forecast

Exact-coordinate weather, sky geometry and site context.

Full method →20-year baseline →
Sources and scoring details openclose

Conditions for Tucson, Arizona, United States are computed from the MET Norway forecast model for these exact coordinates, combined with sun and moon positions we calculate directly. The score weighs cloud cover by layer, atmospheric transparency, estimated seeing, moonlight and astronomical twilight. Site darkness is shown separately, then used only where artificial skyglow physically changes moon contrast, haze scattering, visual limits and target suitability.