Live Sky Report
What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in Athlone, Leinster, Ireland?
New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for 53.42°, -7.94° (Europe/Dublin).
Visible planets tonight
Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars — brightest: Venus at mag -4.4 in Virgo
🔭 Tonight's Sky Report
📍 Athlone, Leinster, Ireland — Wednesday, August 12
Tonight's sky above Athlone, Leinster, Ireland
Whether tonight is a good night for stargazing from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland comes down to four real things: the Moon phase, cloud cover, which planets are up, and the current Kp index.
Above Athlone, Leinster, Ireland tonight (53.42°, -7.94°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 3.8 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 53.4°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 4.4 or higher — to reach Athlone, Leinster, Ireland.
Local sky character in Athlone
Northern mid-latitudes · northern hemisphere · 39 m elevation
- The north celestial pole stands 53.4° above the horizon, so stars within 53° of it never set from here.
- About 90.2% of the whole sky rises above the horizon at some point in the year from this latitude.
- The Milky Way's core in Sagittarius culminates about 7.6° up, staying low, so a clear southern horizon matters.
- At 39 m elevation, roughly 0% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.
Athlone is small enough that local light domes are limited — on a clear, moonless night the Milky Way is realistically within reach.
Best nights this month in Athlone
Calculated for these coordinates and today's date — not a fixed list.
- 2026-08-12 — Darkest night of the coming month
The Moon is only 0% illuminated, giving the least lunar interference in the next 30 nights — the best window for the Milky Way and faint deep-sky targets from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland.
- 2026-08-12 — Perseids peak — up to 100/hour
Radiant in Perseus. Favours the Northern Hemisphere, which includes Athlone, Leinster, Ireland. The Moon is 2% lit on peak night, so lunar interference is none.
- 2026-08-27 — Full Moon
A 100%-lit Moon washes out faint objects, but lunar terrain along the limb is at its most striking — plan bright targets and planets instead of deep sky.
Athlone, Leinster, Ireland stargazing questions
- What can I see in the sky tonight from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland?
- Tonight from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland expect a new moon Moon at 0% illumination, with these naked-eye planets above the horizon after dark: Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars. The night offers about 3.8 hours of true astronomical darkness.
- Is light pollution a problem in Athlone, Leinster, Ireland?
- Athlone, Leinster, Ireland is small enough that the Milky Way can be visible on clear, moonless nights away from the immediate centre. This page's Moon and darkness figures tell you the other half of the story.
- When can I see the Milky Way from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland?
- The core reaches about 7.6° altitude, so target the moonless nights listed in the best-nights section and get away from the city core.
- How dark does it actually get in Athlone, Leinster, Ireland tonight?
- About 3.8 hours of astronomical darkness (Sun more than 18° below the horizon). That is the real observing window for faint objects; brighter targets are workable from dusk onward.
Nearby cities
Real great-circle distance from Athlone, Leinster, Ireland.
More in Leinster
Other sky reports in the same region.
Sky tonight across Ireland
Other cities in Ireland with live sky reports.
Popular astronomy destinations
Aurora hubs, dark-sky sites, and observatory towns.