Live Sky Report
What Can I See in the Sky Tonight in Tarkwa, Western, Ghana?
New Moon moon at 0%, Venus shines at magnitude -4.4. Calculated for 5.30°, -1.99° (Africa/Accra).
Visible planets tonight
Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Saturn, Mars — brightest: Venus at mag -4.4 in Virgo
🔭 Tonight's Sky Report
📍 Tarkwa, Western, Ghana — Wednesday, August 12
Tonight's sky above Tarkwa, Western, Ghana
Whether tonight is a good night for stargazing from Tarkwa, Western, Ghana comes down to four real things: the Moon phase, cloud cover, which planets are up, and the current Kp index.
Above Tarkwa, Western, Ghana tonight (5.30°, -1.99°), expect a new moon moon at 0% illumination. The night gives 9.3 hours of true astronomical darkness. At 5.3°, aurora needs a strong storm — roughly Kp 9 or higher — to reach Tarkwa, Western, Ghana.
Local sky character in Tarkwa
Tropical / equatorial latitudes · northern hemisphere · 86 m elevation
- The north celestial pole stands 5.3° above the horizon, so stars within 5° of it never set from here.
- About 54.6% 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 55.7° up, clearing the horizon haze comfortably.
- The Large Magellanic Cloud only reaches about 15° altitude, so it is a low, seasonal target rather than a year-round one.
- At 86 m elevation, roughly 1% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.
Tarkwa 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 Tarkwa
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 Tarkwa, Western, Ghana.
- 2026-08-12 — Perseids peak — up to 100/hour
Radiant in Perseus. Favours the Northern Hemisphere, which includes Tarkwa, Western, Ghana. 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.
Tarkwa, Western, Ghana stargazing questions
- What can I see in the sky tonight from Tarkwa, Western, Ghana?
- Tonight from Tarkwa, Western, Ghana 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 9.3 hours of true astronomical darkness.
- Can I see both northern and southern constellations from Tarkwa, Western, Ghana?
- Yes — this is the real advantage of an equatorial location. At 5.3° N, about 54.6% 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 Tarkwa, Western, Ghana?
- The Galactic Centre culminates around 55.7° above the horizon from here, high enough to clear most horizon haze. Local cloud and humidity, not geometry, are usually the limiting factor at tropical latitudes.
- Are there seasons for stargazing in Tarkwa, Western, Ghana?
- 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 Tarkwa, Western, Ghana tonight?
- About 9.3 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 Tarkwa, Western, Ghana.
More in Western
Other sky reports in the same region.
Sky tonight across Ghana
Other cities in Ghana with live sky reports.
Popular astronomy destinations
Aurora hubs, dark-sky sites, and observatory towns.