Stargazing in South Africa

Current stargazing scores for cities in South Africa
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South Africa

27 monitored cities

South Africa has 27 monitored cities. Johannesburg has the lowest current stargazing score (36). 13 cities have a current stargazing score below 40.

Stargazing snapshot

Median score

41

Dark skies

2

Moderate

12

Light polluted

13

Understanding Sky Darkness Score

80-100

Excellent

Very dark skies with minimal artificial light. Ideal for deep-sky observation.

70-79

Good

Dark skies suitable for most stargazing. Some distant glow may be visible.

40-69

Moderate

Noticeable sky glow from nearby towns. Brighter objects remain visible.

20-39

Poor

Strong light pollution limits visibility of fainter stars and the Milky Way.

0-19

Severe

Heavy urban sky glow. Only the brightest stars and planets are easy to see.

The sky darkness score runs from 0 to 100. Higher scores mean darker skies with less artificial light at night. Lower scores indicate brighter, more light-polluted skies.

Source: Light pollution research datasets

Last updated: 20 Sep 17:07

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