Night Sky Platform
This Month in the Sky
A month-by-month planning aid for the observing year. The platform does not assume today's date — a live 'this month' view is prepared for a connected date-and-location provider; here is the perennial guide instead.
Night SkyPrepared for live data
Planning an observing month
To plan a month of observing: check the Moon's phase (a bright Moon washes out faint objects and meteors), note any meteor-shower peaks, and find a dark site with a clear horizon in the right direction. The highlights of the year fall in these months:
January
- Quadrantids peak — The Quadrantids peak (night of 3–4 January), radiating from bootes.
April
- Lyrids peak — The Lyrids peak (night of 22–23 April), radiating from lyra.
August
- Perseids peak — The Perseids peak (night of 12–13 August), radiating from perseus.
December
- December Solstice — The Sun reaches its southernmost point — the longest night in the Northern Hemisphere.
- Geminids peak — The Geminids peak (night of 13–14 December), radiating from gemini.
For the full year, see the observing year and the observing calendar.