Stargazing in Thembisa tonight

South Africa · -26.00°, 28.23°

Stargazing verdict · tonight

Fair

Fair — stars visible, but not the best conditions.

›A bright full moon (100% lit) will wash out fainter stars.
›About 10 hours of true darkness to work with.

Your sky map — scrub through time

A live map of the sky above Thembisa: the Moon, planets, bright stars and constellations, exactly where they are. Drag the sliders to move through the night — or forward and back by days — and watch everything shift.

The sky over Thembisa

Thu 27 Aug, 22:00 · looking up — N at top, E to the left

Day

Time of night22:00

Drag the sliders to travel through time — watch the Moon, planets and constellations rise, set and shift. Positions are computed live for Thembisa.

Tonight's sky in Thembisa

🌕 Moon

Full Moon

100% lit

🌑 Darkness

19:09–05:06

10h of dark

🌇 Sun

sets 17:52

rises 06:23

🌙 Moon rise/set

up 17:20

down 06:25

Planets visible tonight

♀ Venus

Best evening · toward the W · 27° up

♂ Mars

Best early hours · toward the NE · 20° up

♄ Saturn

Best early hours · toward the NW · 44° up

Best nights to stargaze — next two weeks

Ranked by how dark the sky will be (less Moon = better). Pair with a clear-sky forecast on the night.

Thu 27 Aug

27 Aug

100% moon

Fri 28 Aug

28 Aug

99% moon

Sat 29 Aug

29 Aug

97% moon

Sun 30 Aug

30 Aug

92% moon

Mon 31 Aug

31 Aug

85% moon

Tue 1 Sept

1 Sept

76% moon

Wed 2 Sept

2 Sept

66% moon

Thu 3 Sept

3 Sept

55% moon

Fri 4 Sept

4 Sept

43% moon

Sat 5 Sept

5 Sept

32% moon

Sun 6 Sept

6 Sept

22% moon

Mon 7 Sept

7 Sept

13% moon

Tue 8 Sept

8 Sept

6% moon

Wed 9 Sept

9 Sept

2% moon

Upcoming sky events from Thembisa

28 August

Partial lunar eclipse

A partial lunar eclipse on 28 August, with part of the full Moon dimming and reddening as it enters Earth's shadow. Visible from the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia depending on your local moonrise/moonset.

4 October

Saturn at opposition

Saturn reaches opposition on 4 October — directly opposite the Sun, so it rises at sunset, sets at sunrise and is at its biggest and brightest of the year. The best night to catch the rings through even a small telescope.

26 September · lesser-known

Neptune at opposition

The most distant planet reaches opposition on 26 September — its brightest for the year, though still faint. A rewarding challenge target: Neptune shows as a tiny blue-grey disc through a telescope. One for the keen.

14 December

Geminid meteor shower

Widely considered the best shower of the year: slow, bright, often colourful meteors at up to ~150 per hour under dark skies. In 2026 the Moon is only a young crescent at the 13–14 December peak, so conditions are excellent.

21 October · lesser-known

Orionid meteor shower

Fast, faint meteors — debris from Halley's Comet — peaking around 21 October at ~20 per hour. A quieter, connoisseur's shower; moonlight hampers the 2026 peak, so aim for the darkest hours.

Moon phase for Thembisa →All sky events

Stargazing in Thembisa — FAQ

Is tonight good for stargazing in Thembisa?

Fair — stars visible, but not the best conditions. A bright full moon (100% lit) will wash out fainter stars. Check the live cloud forecast above, which updates through the day.

What planets are visible from Thembisa tonight?

Tonight you can spot Venus, Mars, Saturn above the horizon from Thembisa, conditions permitting.

When is the best night to stargaze in Thembisa soon?

The darkest upcoming night is around Wed 9 Sept, when the Moon is only 2% lit.

Times are local to Thembisa (Africa/Johannesburg). Astronomical data is computed from established models; the cloud forecast is live from Open-Meteo and refreshes through the day. Always confirm with a live forecast before travelling to a dark-sky site.