Stargazing at Cairngorms National Park: when is the sky clear and dark?
April is the best month for stargazing at Cairngorms National Park: on average 8 clear, moonless hours of full darkness, and 9% of nights have at least two of them (ERA5, 2006–2025). The darkest spot we found there is darker than 97% of Europe’s land (NASA VIIRS 2025).
national park · United Kingdom
Month by month
| Month | Nights with ≥ 2 such hours | Clear moonless dark hours | Moonless dark hours | Of them clear |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3% | 4 | 189 | 2% |
| February | 2% | 3 | 144 | 2% |
| March | 6% | 7 | 119 | 6% |
| April | 9% | 8 | 60 | 14% |
| May | 0% | 0 | 0 | — |
| June | 0% | 0 | 0 | — |
| July | 0% | 0 | 0 | — |
| August | 1% | 1 | 36 | 3% |
| September | 3% | 4 | 103 | 4% |
| October | 4% | 4 | 151 | 3% |
| November | 1% | 2 | 171 | 1% |
| December | 2% | 2 | 189 | 1% |
No astronomical darkness (May, June, July): the Sun stays above −18° all night.
Climate, not a forecast: these are shares of past nights (ERA5 reanalysis, 2006–2025), not a prediction for a particular night. Check a forecast before you go.
Light pollution
| Darker than | 97% of Europe’s land |
|---|---|
| Light pollution | among the darkest 5 % of Europe |
| Sky-glow index (own, VIIRS) — Darkest spot we found | 0.073 |
| Sky-glow index (own, VIIRS) — at the official map point | 0.20 |
| Sky-glow index (own, VIIRS) — median across the area | 0.27 |
| Darkest spot we found | 56.992, -4.475 (map) — within the OSM boundary |
Next new moons
| New moon | Night | Moonless dark hours that night | Typical share of good nights that month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 November 2026 | 8–9 November 2026 | 11.0 | 1% |
| 9 December 2026 | 8–9 December 2026 | 12.2 | 2% |
| 7 January 2027 | 7–8 January 2027 | 12.2 | 3% |
| 6 February 2027 | 6–7 February 2027 | 10.8 | 2% |
| 8 March 2027 | 7–8 March 2027 | 8.5 | 6% |
| 6 April 2027 | 6–7 April 2027 | 5.5 | 9% |
| 6 May 2027 | 5–6 May 2027 | 0.0 | 0% |
| 4 June 2027 | 4–5 June 2027 | 0.0 | 0% |
| 4 July 2027 | 3–4 July 2027 | 0.0 | 0% |
| 2 August 2027 | 1–2 August 2027 | 0.0 | 1% |
| 31 August 2027 | 31 August 2027 – 1 September 2027 | 4.8 | 1% |
| 30 September 2027 | 29–30 September 2027 | 8.0 | 3% |
Hours with the Sun below −18° and the Moon below the horizon, on the night of the new moon, at the darkest spot.
Meteor showers
| Shower | Peak night | Chance of a clear peak night | Moon lit | Moonless dark hours (Sun < −12°) | Radiant max. height |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leonids | 17–18 November 2026 | 3% | 55% | 7.2 | 55° |
| Geminids * | 13–14 December 2026 | 3% | 20% | 11.3 | 66° |
| Geminids * | 14–15 December 2026 | 2% | 29% | 10.0 | 66° |
| Quadrantids | 3–4 January 2027 | 3% | 13% | 13.5 | 74° |
| Lyrids | 22–23 April 2027 | 30% | 95% | 1.5 | 64° |
| Eta Aquariids * | 5–6 May 2027 | 8% | 0% | 4.3 | 3° |
| Eta Aquariids * | 6–7 May 2027 | 12% | 1% | 4.0 | 2° |
| Perseids * | 12–13 August 2027 | 0% | 84% | 3.3 | 64° |
| Perseids * | 13–14 August 2027 | 2% | 90% | 2.2 | 65° |
| Orionids | 21–22 October 2027 | 3% | 58% | 2.3 | 49° |
| Leonids | 17–18 November 2027 | 3% | 82% | 1.0 | 55° |
| Geminids | 14–15 December 2027 | 2% | 98% | 0.0 | 66° |
* The peak falls in daylight in Europe, so both neighbouring nights are shown.
Clear peak night: at least 2 hours with ≤ 20 % cloud while the Sun is below −12°, on the same calendar night ± 1 in 2006–2025.