10 Best places in the World for Stargazing

“When you look at the stars and the galaxy, you feel that you are not just from any particular piece of land, but from the solar system”

– Kalpana Chawla

The Ancient Practice of Stargazing

Since the dawn of humankind, our species has been fascinated with the skies. Humans always looked up in wonder when the brilliant star of the day, our Sun, dived beyond the horizon.

There’s just something otherworldly in lying down in a quiet, dark place outdoors, and staring at the starry black canvas above you. Gazing at the twinkling stars, contemplating our place in the Cosmos, thinking about the vastness of the universe, facing our own mortality.

But centuries ago, it was so much easier to just step outside your house, cave, tent, and look up and marvel at the shiny dots surrounded by blackness! What are the best conditions for stargazing for modern man?

Observatories for astronomy-research purposes are built all over the world in high and dry places (to avoid atmospheric distortion phenomena) and of course remotely, so that the dreaded effects of light pollution are avoided.

Places with NO Light Pollution

The night sky always fascinated me, and many times I’ve wished I was born in a small town or remote village where the sky would be as dark as ebony at night, allowing me to gaze at as many stars as possible with my naked eyes. I was born in a big city instead, looking at a flat and sparsely populated night sky, but I never miss an opportunity to visit remote places and spend the night stargazing! (Read more about me here)

So, first thing to look for when planning a night of looking at the stars, is clear skies with no clouds and no light pollution. Some fortunate people live in places where half an hour of driving can take them to dark skies, but others need to travel far to escape big city lights.

Light pollution is a plague in the 21st century, for developed countries and increasingly in the developing world as well. Signposts, outdoor signs, street lamps, traffic headlights; they all drown out the stars above in a dull, orange haze.

 

The areas in the planet with reportedly less light pollution are these:

• North Korea, where most lights are turned off during the night resulting in a pitch-black area on Google Maps!
• Most countries in southern and eastern Asia.
• Deserts in Australia, Africa and Chile.

And the places with the most light pollution, that can no longer experience night-time darkness, are:

• Industrial areas of England (stretch between Manchester and Liverpool, down through Birmingham to London.
• Along the border of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, especially around Amsterdam.
• The area between Milan and Venice, in Northern Italy.
• Most of the eastern United States is bathed in intense light pollution; Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, Boston.
• Metropolitan areas around San Francisco and Los Angeles.
• The Cairo metropolitan area is bathed in sky glow.
• The Gulf states of Bahrain, Qatar and United Arab Emirates.
• Hong Kong and Shanghai.

The stars are disappearing before our eyes

Astronomers all over the world are worried that new generations are growing up without being able to see the Milky Way, the closest and brightest galaxy to our solar system. “We’re losing the night sky so gradually that people don’t quite realize what we’re giving up”, says astronomer Tyler Nordgren. It’s such a pity, thinking that today’s kids have absolutely no idea what our ancestors were experiencing every evening before they retired to sleep.

I believe that everyone should travel to at least one of the following places in their lifetime. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to experience a night of star-filled wonder! All these destinations are in my bucket list, since the darkest sky I have ever watched was in a desert safari in Egypt. It was magnificent and infused me with a desire to travel to the darkest spots on Earth and look up at the Milky Way and the myriads of stars!

The 10 best places in the World for Stargazing

1. Yosemite National Park
   Stargazing tours are run at Glacier point every summer. After exploring the natural wonders of the park for a few days, visitors have the opportunity for an amazing stargazing experience when night falls.
2. Mauna Kea, Hawaii
   This is the tallest sea mountain in the world, and the observatory on its top houses 13 telescopes which represent 11 countries. Tour companies organize trips up to the peak, offering detailed narratives on the history and significance of this astrological epicenter.

   

    

3. Death Valley National Park, California
   In California’s desert, the skies come alive with a myriad twinkling stars after sunset. Darkness reveals the expanse of the Milky Way in all its glory.

   

    

4. Atacama Desert, Chile
   This is a dry and remote desert set in a high altitude, offering crystal-clear skies and little rainfall. Many tours run stargazing expeditions and there are special packages to explore the place by night.

   

    

5. Aoraki Mackenzie, New Zealand
   This is the first designated sky reserve in the Southern Hemisphere and remains the biggest in the world. It is a region almost entirely free of light pollution, offering pitch-black stargazing opportunities!
6. Namib Rand National Reserve, Namibia
   Namibia is an overlooked but amazing country where travelers come to watch wildlife by day and stargaze by night. Imagine a landscape full of sand dunes and shimmering stars above!
7. Pic du Midi, France
   In the summer, outdoor hikers climb to the peak. Winter visitors can use the cable car that takes them to a sky-high hotel where they can experience galaxies and lunar craters, looking through the giant telescope.
8. Easter Island, Chile
   A fascinating destination for ancient civilizations geeks and keen stargazers! Enjoy skies full of glimmering stars.

   

    

9. Trysil, Norway
   Suitable for keen stargazers and Northern Lights hunters alike!
10. Cherry Springs State Park, Pennsylvania
    During a night with a new moon, the Milky Way is so bright that it casts shadows!

Happy Stargazing!

“If people sat outside and looked at the stars each night, I’ll bet they’d live a lot differently”

– Bill Watterson