Live Sky Report
What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in El Marsa, Western Sahara?
New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for 27.10°, -13.42° (Africa/El_Aaiun).
Visible planets tonight
Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars — brightest: Venus at mag -4.4 in Virgo
🔭 Tonight's Sky Report
📍 El Marsa, Western Sahara — Thursday, August 13
Tonight's sky above El Marsa, Western Sahara
Whether tonight is a good night for stargazing from El Marsa, Western Sahara comes down to four real things: the Moon phase, cloud cover, which planets are up, and the current Kp index.
Above El Marsa, Western Sahara tonight (27.10°, -13.42°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 8.1 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 27.1°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 9 or higher — to reach El Marsa, Western Sahara.
Local sky character in El Marsa
Northern mid-latitudes · northern hemisphere · 4 m elevation
- The north celestial pole stands 27.1° above the horizon, so stars within 27° of it never set from here.
- About 72.8% 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 33.9° up, staying low, so a clear southern horizon matters.
- At 4 m elevation, roughly 0% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.
El Marsa 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 El Marsa
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 El Marsa, Western Sahara.
- 2026-08-28 — 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.
El Marsa, Western Sahara stargazing questions
- What can I see in the sky tonight from El Marsa, Western Sahara?
- Tonight from El Marsa, Western Sahara 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 8.1 hours of true astronomical darkness.
- Is light pollution a problem in El Marsa, Western Sahara?
- El Marsa, Western Sahara 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 El Marsa, Western Sahara?
- The core reaches about 33.9° 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 El Marsa, Western Sahara tonight?
- About 8.1 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 El Marsa, Western Sahara.
Sky tonight across Western Sahara
Other cities in Western Sahara with live sky reports.
Popular astronomy destinations
Aurora hubs, dark-sky sites, and observatory towns.