What planets are visible tonight?

Which planets are visible depends on your date and location. Venus, Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn are the four naked-eye planets that are frequently visible; Mercury is visible only in brief windows near sunrise or sunset. Enter your city above and the report will list the planets currently above the horizon after dark.

Can I see the Northern Lights tonight?

Aurora visibility depends on the Kp index and your geomagnetic latitude. At Kp 3, aurora is typically visible only near the Arctic and Antarctic circles. At Kp 5 (a G1 storm), the auroral oval expands south into the northern U.S. and northern Europe. At Kp 7+ it can reach mid-latitudes. The report above compares your latitude to the current auroral boundary in real time.

Is there a meteor shower tonight?

There are around a dozen major meteor showers each year. The report above shows the next active shower and how many days until its peak. For best viewing, look after midnight from a dark location with the shower's radiant above the horizon.

When will the ISS pass over tonight?

The International Space Station passes overhead multiple times per day, but only some passes are visible (bright, after dusk or before dawn, and above the horizon). The report above shows the next visible pass time for your location, computed from live NORAD orbital elements.

What can I see in the sky tonight from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?

Tonight from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia 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 9.9 hours of true astronomical darkness.

Can I see both northern and southern constellations from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?

Yes — this is the real advantage of an equatorial location. At 11.8° S, about 60.3% of the entire celestial sphere rises at some point in the year, so Polaris-side constellations and the Southern Cross region are both reachable across the seasons.

How good is the Milky Way from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?

The Galactic Centre culminates around 72.8° above the horizon from here, which is nearly overhead — the densest part of the Milky Way passes through the zenith region, the best geometry available anywhere on Earth. Local cloud and humidity, not geometry, are usually the limiting factor at tropical latitudes.

Are there seasons for stargazing in Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?

Night length barely changes at this latitude — twilight is short and the Sun sets steeply, so darkness arrives quickly all year. What changes is which part of the sky is on view after sunset, and, in monsoon-affected regions, how often the sky is clear at all.

How dark does it actually get in Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia tonight?

About 9.9 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.

Live Sky Report

What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?

New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for -11.83°, 31.45° (Africa/Lusaka).

Moon

New Moon

0% lit

Sunset

5:50 PM

Dusk 7:02 PM

Dark hours

9.9 h

Dawn 4:55 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

📍 Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia — Thursday, August 13

⭐ Stargazing—

🌙 MoonNew Moon • 0% Illumination

🪐 Visible planetsMars, Saturn

🌠 Meteor activityDraconids in 57 days

🌌 Milky WayVisible after dark, low moonlight

🛰️ ISSLoading…

🌈 Aurora—

☁️ Cloud cover—

🌡️ Temperature—

Tonight's sky above Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia

Above Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia tonight, the sky is a live system: the Moon's illumination, which planets have cleared the horizon, and whether Earth's magnetosphere is quiet or churning all change hour by hour.

Above Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia tonight (-11.83°, 31.45°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 9.9 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 11.8°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 9 or higher — to reach Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia.

Local sky character in Mpika

Tropical / equatorial latitudes · southern hemisphere · 1428 m elevation

The south celestial pole stands 11.8° above the horizon, so stars within 12° of it never set from here.
About 60.3% 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 72.8° up, passing almost directly overhead.
The Large Magellanic Cloud only reaches about 32.1° altitude, so it is a low, seasonal target rather than a year-round one.
At 1428 m elevation, roughly 15% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.

Pole altitude

11.8°

Sky reachable

60.3%

Milky Way core

72.8° max

Aurora australis

Kp 9+

Mpika is a town-scale settlement, so the edge of the built-up area is often dark enough for the Milky Way on moonless nights.

Best nights this month in Mpika

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 Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia.
2026-08-27 — Full Moon
A 99%-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.

Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia stargazing questions

What can I see in the sky tonight from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?: Tonight from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia 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 9.9 hours of true astronomical darkness.
Can I see both northern and southern constellations from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?: Yes — this is the real advantage of an equatorial location. At 11.8° S, about 60.3% of the entire celestial sphere rises at some point in the year, so Polaris-side constellations and the Southern Cross region are both reachable across the seasons.
How good is the Milky Way from Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?: The Galactic Centre culminates around 72.8° above the horizon from here, which is nearly overhead — the densest part of the Milky Way passes through the zenith region, the best geometry available anywhere on Earth. Local cloud and humidity, not geometry, are usually the limiting factor at tropical latitudes.
Are there seasons for stargazing in Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia?: Night length barely changes at this latitude — twilight is short and the Sun sets steeply, so darkness arrives quickly all year. What changes is which part of the sky is on view after sunset, and, in monsoon-affected regions, how often the sky is clear at all.
How dark does it actually get in Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia tonight?: About 9.9 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 Mpika, Muchinga, Zambia.

More in Muchinga

Other sky reports in the same region.

Sky tonight across Zambia

Other cities in Zambia with live sky reports.

Popular astronomy destinations

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