The Home Almanac

Vol. I, MMXXVIThe American home, in season.Across all fifty states

Stargazing Forecast

Tonight's darkness window, cloud cover, moon interference, and sky score for your US location. Built for the backyard decision: worth going outside or not.

Showing a sensible default until you set your own place. Your location stays in your browser.

Calculating for the default place.

What makes a good stargazing night

The score starts with astronomical darkness, then subtracts for cloud cover and a bright moon that is above the horizon. It is meant for naked-eye and small-scope planning, not observatory scheduling.

Cloud cover comes through a cached keyless forecast endpoint. The solar and moon pieces are computed from your location in the browser.

Stargazing Forecast questions

Does this include light pollution?

Not yet. It rates the sky conditions for your location, but nearby city light still affects what you can see.

Why does moonlight matter?

A bright moon washes out faint stars, nebulae, and the Milky Way even when the sky is cloud-free.