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What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa?

New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for -31.47°, 19.78° (Africa/Johannesburg).

Moon
New Moon
0% lit
Sunset
6:13 PM
Dusk 7:35 PM
Dark hours
10.3 h
Dawn 5:55 AM
Aurora
Needs Kp 9+
Belt 58°

Visible planets tonight

Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars — brightest: Venus at mag -4.4 in Virgo

🔭 Tonight's Sky Report

📍 Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa — Thursday, August 13

⭐ Stargazing—
🌙 MoonNew Moon • 0% Illumination
🪐 Visible planetsMars, Saturn
🌠 Meteor activityDraconids in 56 days
🌌 Milky WayVisible after dark, low moonlight
🛰️ ISSLoading…
🌈 Aurora—
☁️ Cloud cover—
🌡️ Temperature—

Tonight's sky above Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa

Skywatchers in Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa have the same live tools professional observers use — a real ephemeris, live Kp readings from NOAA SWPC, and hourly cloud forecasts — condensed into one report on this page.

Above Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa tonight (-31.47°, 19.78°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 10.3 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 31.5°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 9 or higher — to reach Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa.

Local sky character in Calvinia

Southern mid-latitudes · southern hemisphere · 987 m elevation

  • The south celestial pole stands 31.5° above the horizon, so stars within 32° of it never set from here.
  • About 76.1% 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 87.5° up, passing almost directly overhead.
  • The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are circumpolar here — visible on any clear, dark night of the year.
  • At 987 m elevation, roughly 11% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.
Pole altitude
31.5°
Sky reachable
76.1%
Milky Way core
87.5° max
Aurora australis
Kp 9+

Calvinia is small enough that local light domes are limited — on a clear, moonless night the Milky Way is realistically within reach.

Astronomy near Calvinia

Real great-circle distances from Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa.

  • Sutherland Karoo Dark Sky Area — dark-sky place, 135 km away, 1500 m
  • South African Astronomical Observatory (SALT) — observatory, 140 km away, 1798 m

Best nights this month in Calvinia

Calculated for these coordinates and today's date — not a fixed list.

  • 2026-08-13 — 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 Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa.

  • 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.

Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa stargazing questions

What can I see in the sky tonight from Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa?
Tonight from Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa 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 10.3 hours of true astronomical darkness.
Where is the nearest dark-sky site to Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa?
Sutherland Karoo Dark Sky Area lies about 135 km away; South African Astronomical Observatory (SALT) lies about 140 km away. Distances are real great-circle distances from Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa's coordinates.
When is the best time to stargaze near Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa?
Combine two things this page computes: the astronomical darkness window (dusk to dawn), and the Moon. Nights within a few days of New Moon inside that window are the ones worth travelling for; the "best nights" section lists the next ones.
How dark does it actually get in Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa tonight?
About 10.3 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 Calvinia, Northern Cape, South Africa.

More in Northern Cape

Other sky reports in the same region.

Sky tonight across South Africa

Other cities in South Africa with live sky reports.

Popular astronomy destinations

Aurora hubs, dark-sky sites, and observatory towns.

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