Stargazing in Cheongju-si, North Chungcheong, South Korea

Dark-sky rating for Cheongju-si

Cheongju-si, North Chungcheong, South Korea is a mid-sized city (population about 852,147). A place this size typically has a bright suburban sky: main constellations are easy, the Milky Way is washed out. That is an estimate of Bortle class 5–6 from population, not a measurement: the real value depends on the exact spot you observe from.

For a measured reading at any point, open the live Dark Sky map.

Nearest dark-sky places and observatories

• Yeongyang Firefly Dark Sky Park · certified dark-sky place · about 144 km away

Milky Way season in Cheongju-si

The bright core of the Milky Way stays low, so you need a clear southern or northern horizon. It climbs at least 20° above the horizon during astronomical darkness in March, April, May, June, July, August, peaking in June at about 24°.

• The north celestial pole stands 36.6° above the horizon, so stars within 37° of it never set from here.
• About 79.8% 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 24.4° up, staying low, so a clear southern horizon matters.
• At 49 m elevation, roughly 1% of the atmosphere's mass is already below you, which measurably reduces extinction near the horizon.

Tonight and aurora

As of October 19, 2026 (UTC) the Moon is a Waxing Gibbous at 61% illumination. Aurora at 36.6° latitude generally needs about Kp 9.0.

Nearby places

• Sejong, Sejong-si, South Korea
• Daejeon, Daejeon, South Korea
• Cheonan, Chungcheongnam-do, South Korea
• Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Chungju, North Chungcheong, South Korea
• Osan, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea