Milky Way Calendar 2028
The best nights to photograph the Milky Way at 30+ world-class dark sky locations. Each cell shows a Saturday night's visibility rating based on galactic core position and moon phase — so you can plan trips around peak conditions.
Data computed from astronomical algorithms · Updated for 2028
2028 Visibility at a Glance
Each column is a Saturday night. Green = excellent conditions, amber = fair, grey = not visible. Click a location name to see its detailed calendar. Or enter custom coordinates.
| Location | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Milky Way Season 2028: Month-by-Month Guide
What to expect each part of the season and where to shoot.
January – February
Early SeasonThe galactic core begins to rise in the pre-dawn hours at lower latitudes. Southern Hemisphere locations like the Atacama Desert, Namib Desert, and Uluru get their first good windows of 2028. In the Northern Hemisphere, the core remains below the horizon during darkness for most locations above 40°N — but photographers in the American Southwest and Canary Islands can catch brief pre-dawn glimpses by late February. This is a good time to scout locations and plan your peak-season trips.
March – April
Season OpensThe Milky Way season opens in earnest. By March, the galactic core is visible in the early morning hours from most mid-latitude locations. Moab, Death Valley, and the Grand Canyon begin showing viable windows, and by April the core is accessible from European locations like the Dolomites and Snowdonia. The core appears as a horizontal arch low on the southeastern horizon — ideal for panoramic compositions with landscape foregrounds. Schedule shoots around the new moon for the darkest skies.
May – July
Peak SeasonThis is prime time. The galactic core reaches its highest elevation and longest visibility windows across both hemispheres. At mid-northern latitudes (35°–45°N), expect 4–6 hours of core visibility per night during new moon periods. The core transitions from a low arch in May to a near-vertical orientation by July, offering dramatically different compositions throughout the peak. Mauna Kea, Tenerife, and all tropical/equatorial locations enjoy the longest windows — often 6+ hours of galactic core visibility.
For Northern Hemisphere photographers, June and July new moons represent the absolute best shooting conditions of the year. In the Southern Hemisphere, the core passes nearly overhead from the Atacama and Namib, producing the brightest, most detailed views possible from Earth.
August – September
Late SeasonThe galactic core begins setting earlier in the evening, shifting from overhead to the western sky. This is actually a favorite time for many photographers — the core is visible right after astronomical twilight without needing to stay up until 2 AM. Northern locations like Jasper and Cherry Springs see their season winding down by September, while Southern Hemisphere locations remain excellent through October. Aoraki Mackenzie and Torres del Paine are superb choices for late-season photography.
October – December
Off-SeasonThe galactic core drops below the horizon during darkness for most Northern Hemisphere locations. A few Southern Hemisphere sites — particularly Atacama and Aoraki Mackenzie — squeeze out final windows in October. This is the time to plan next year's shoots, book travel to dark sky destinations, and start planning with our 2029 calendar.
How We Calculate Visibility Ratings
Galactic Core Position
We compute the galactic center's altitude using Local Sidereal Time and spherical trigonometry for each location. The core must be above the horizon during astronomical darkness (sun more than 18° below horizon).
Moon Illumination
Even when the core is visible, moonlight washes out detail. Our 0–10 rating scale weighs moon illumination heavily: new moon (0–5%) scores 9–10, while anything above 85% drops to 0 regardless of core visibility.
Latitude Matters
The galactic center sits at declination -29°, so it reaches higher elevations from southern latitudes. Locations near 25°S (Atacama, Namib) see the core nearly overhead — producing the brightest, most detailed views.
Want nightly detail instead of a weekly overview? Our interactive calendar tool generates month-by-month breakdowns for any location on Earth — including exact galactic core rise/set times, moon phase data, and downloadable PDFs. Choose from 30+ curated dark sky locations or enter custom coordinates.
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This overview covers 30+ locations at a weekly level. For detailed nightly data at your exact coordinates — with galactic core timing, moon phases, and downloadable PDF calendars — use our free planning tool.
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