What attracts people to the top stargazing spots around the world are dark skies and bright stars. People with things such as spotting planets, constellations, and the Milky Way on their bucket list, often like to plan a trip to these top stargazing places in the world. Fortunately, some unique destinations around the world provide incredible views of the night sky with little light pollution.
Thus, even amateur astronomers can see while having a once-in-a-lifetime astronomical experience. In this article, you’ll find the 5 best places to go stargazing around the world.
Stargazing: A Magical Experience
Stargazing is a simple act of looking at the stars that ease our minds and rejuvenates our spirits. Looking at these stars also reminds us that we’re part of a larger universe. Isn’t it a great idea to look up and get to know half our world overhead? It’s a wonderful way of finding inner calm by looking up at the night sky.
Stargazing is also known as amateur astronomy and is simple and accessible to most people. You can observe most individual stars in our galaxy without a telescope. After familiarizing yourself with the basics, you can use a telescope to have the best look at those stars and planets in our galaxy, and in other galaxies as well.
After understanding the above concept, let’s move on to the list of best spots that offer amazing stargazing experiences.
Top 5 Places for Stargazing
The following places are the favorite spots of amateur astronomers. If you have not yet visited them, definitely plan your next trip to one of these destinations.
1. The Atacama Desert, Chile
Source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/star-trekking-chile-astronomy-180955798/
You’ll find Northern Chile’s Atacama Desert as the driest place on Earth when you exclude the North and South Poles. With mere millimeters of rain every year, its driest sections receive even less than a millimeter. However, as the dry conditions in this region aren’t specifically compatible with plant and animal life, the parallel presence of conditions such as a high altitude, few clouds, and negligible radio interference or light pollution, make it optimal for stargazing.
With its near-perfect visibility, the Atacama Desert provides crystal-clear views of the most popular constellations of the Southern Hemisphere sky. It includes—
• The Tarantula Nebula
• The Fornax Cluster of galaxies
• The Southern Cross
• The Large Magellanic Cloud
• The Milky Way
These are the reasons why many people consider Chile’s Atacama Desert the best place in the world to stargaze. Astro-tourists from across the globe flock to this bucket-list astronomy destination.
This 600-mile stretch of Northern Chile brags the perfect stargazing conditions – high altitude, unpolluted skies, and the driest air on Earth. This is why the Astro-tourism scene is booming. International scientists search for our cosmic origins by using the high-tech satellites at the ALMA Observatory to document the earliest stars and galaxies. The huge antennas clustered in this desert are an otherworldly sight, angled readily toward the skies.
2. Mauna Kea, Hawaii, United State
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/04/science/hawaii-thirty-meter-telescope-mauna-kea.html
Around 2,500 miles southwest of California, the islands of Hawaii are studded with high volcanic peaks and have evolved as one of the world’s premier astronomy destinations. Also, the Mauna Kea summit on the Big Island is possibly the most popular stargazing spot in Hawaii.
Mauna Kea Observatory (the largest research observatory in the world) is situated near Mauna Kea’s 13,803-foot peak, high above the town of Hilo. Being home to 13 of the world’s largest and most powerful telescopes, it’s a major astronomy hub. Also, Mauna Kea is one of those places in the world that allow you to drive from sea level to approximately 14,000 feet in about 2 hours. Just remember to stop at the Visitor Information Station to adapt so you don’t get altitude sickness.
This journey will allow you to see many of the celestial wonders of the Northern Hemisphere with remarkable clarity. Some of them can be – the constellations of Ursa Major and Orion, the Milky Way, and the bands of Jupiter. And since Mauna Kea is very close to the equator, you can see around 80% of Southern Hemisphere stars from here, too. In short, roughly 85% of all the stars visible from the entire earth can be seen from Mauna Kea.
For more Hawaiian stargazing, proceed to Haleakalā National Park situated on the island of Maui. You can try grabbing a star map at the Park Headquarters Visitor Center or Haleakalā Visitor Center and expect to spot the moons of Jupiter — or, a halo around your own shadow on a cloudy night.
Photographers can even get a coveted “moonbow” shot at Makapu’u on O’ahu or the Kalpana Coastline of the Big Island. Moonbows, also popular as lunar rainbows, are very rare. The reason is, they are essentially rainbows lit by the moon and not the sun, thus requiring precise conditions to occur.
3. Aoraki Mackenzie Dark Sky Reserve, New Zealand
Source: https://www.darksky.org/our-work/conservation/idsp/reserves/aorakimackenzie/
The light pollution here in the reserve area was kept in check starting from the early 1980s. However, before that, the native residents, the Māori, used to respect the night sky and also protected the area accordingly. They used the night sky and stars to navigate and incorporated astronomy into their traditions, culture, and folklore.
Today, the Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve continues this legacy and safeguards this astronomical heritage site. The reserve comprises the largest mountain in New Zealand, Mt Aoraki, and Mt Cook National Park along with the Mackenzie Basin. Light pollution is strictly monitored in this area. Mt John Observatory is situated within the premises of this national park and is among the best astronomical research centers in New Zealand.
Since being situated in the southern hemisphere, you will be able to see specific constellations such as the Southern Cross, Sirius, and Alpha Centauri. You can also observe seasonal ecliptic objects, star clusters, and the Milky Way. However, you’ll require their astro-binoculars and modern 14” and 11” telescopes to have a clear view. There are various tours for stargazing offered by the reserve. Also, Mt John Observatory and Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre and Planetarium offer a wide variety of stargazing options.
4. NamibRand Nature Reserve, Namibia
Source: https://www.darksky.org/our-work/conservation/idsp/reserves/namibrand/
Some of the world’s most popular places to see the stars are away from the crowds, and light pollution associated with them. Since life is harsh in the world’s desert environments, it reduces human development and light pollution. One such destination is the NamibRand Nature Reserve in Namibia.
In 1984, a successful businessman, J.A. Brückner established NamibRand Nature Reserve. He started acquiring farmland in the Namib-Naukluft National Park. Taking help from other farm owners, he successfully petitioned that the farmland be transformed into a nature reserve. Today, more than 215,000 hectares of Namibian desert and grasslands are safeguarded in one of the largest private reserves in this region.
In 2012, NamibRand Nature Reserve got recognized and certified as a Dark Sky Reserve. Within this reserve, all tourism and business infrastructure has to comply with low-pollution lighting to make sure that the skies above NamibRand reserve remain dark and species aren’t impacted by light pollution.
In daylight, the NamibRand Nature Reserve is a glaring wilderness of rust-colored ridges and sandy plains, surrounded by the Nubib Mountains. Low-impact safari groups often track leopards, oryx, and zebra roaming through the desert. By dark, stargazing astronomers are treated to magnificent views of the moon, planets, and constellations, that justify NamibRand’s status as the first Dark Sky Reserve of Africa.
5. Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah, United States
Source: https://www.darksky.org/our-work/conservation/idsp/parks/naturalbridges/
The Natural Bridges National Monument is situated in remote Lake Powell, Utah. It became the first certified International Dark Sky Park, and this designation was bestowed by the International Dark-Sky Association, which plays a key role in combating light pollution worldwide. (Today, there are above 190 certified International Dark Sky Places all over the world.)
This designation identifies the area as the one with some of the darkest and clearest skies in the entire world while acknowledging the efforts that have been taken to make it so, thus positioning darkness as a resource that needs to be protected and conserved.
The key attraction of the dark skies in Utah is the “river of light” phenomenon created by the Milky Way when it rises over the Owachomo Bridge, which is a natural rock formation. This bridge forms a type of window into the night sky, and beautifully frames the thousands of stars that can be seen with the naked eye. To get the full experience, you must plan to camp overnight.
Night photographers can click some killer photos at the Natural Bridges National Monument, however, keep in mind that the use of artificial light sources for photography is, obviously, not allowed.
Are you interested in exploring another great stargazing spot in Utah? Check out the East Canyon State Park which is recently added to the list of International Dark Sky Parks.
Undoubtedly, stargazing is an amazing experience with a pleasant impact on our minds. If you are in search of a great destination for your next trip, you can choose from the above options. Your suggestions for more places are also welcome in the comments below!
