Live Sky Report
What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland?
New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for 47.05°, 8.31° (Europe/Zurich).
Visible planets tonight
Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars — brightest: Venus at mag -4.4 in Virgo
🔭 Tonight's Sky Report
📍 Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland — Thursday, August 13
Tonight's sky above Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland
Whether tonight is a good night for stargazing from Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland comes down to four real things: the Moon phase, cloud cover, which planets are up, and the current Kp index.
Above Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland tonight (47.05°, 8.31°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 5.6 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 47.1°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 6.6 or higher — to reach Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland.
Local sky character in Luzern
Northern mid-latitudes · northern hemisphere · 437 m elevation
- The north celestial pole stands 47.1° above the horizon, so stars within 47° of it never set from here.
- About 86.6% 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 13.9° up, staying low, so a clear southern horizon matters.
- At 437 m elevation, roughly 5% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.
Luzern is a town-scale settlement, so the edge of the built-up area is often dark enough for the Milky Way on moonless nights.
Astronomy near Luzern
Real great-circle distances from Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland.
- Sphinx Observatory — observatory, 61 km away, 3571 m
Best nights this month in Luzern
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 Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland.
- 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.
Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland stargazing questions
- What can I see in the sky tonight from Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland?
- Tonight from Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland 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 5.6 hours of true astronomical darkness.
- Does Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland's elevation help stargazing?
- At 437 m you are above a meaningful fraction of the atmosphere, which reduces extinction and scintillation — the reason major observatories are sited high. Sphinx Observatory sits about 61 km from Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland at 3571 m.
- What should I plan for observing near Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland?
- High sites reward targets that suffer most from atmosphere: planets at high altitude, faint nebulae, and the Milky Way, which culminates around 13.9° here. Cold and thinner air are the practical constraints, not the sky.
- How dark does it actually get in Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland tonight?
- About 5.6 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 Luzern, Lucerne, Switzerland.
More in Lucerne
Other sky reports in the same region.
Sky tonight across Switzerland
Other cities in Switzerland with live sky reports.
Popular astronomy destinations
Aurora hubs, dark-sky sites, and observatory towns.