The Milky Way over Billings, MT

The next 60 nights

Each bar is one night: the taller, the longer the core is up in a dark, moonless sky.

No Milky Way nights in the next 60 days: it is off season here. The core returns to the night sky around April 2027.

Milky Way season

Hours of dark sky with the core up, on each month's new-moon night.

1. NovNovember 2026: 0.0 h
2. DecDecember 2026: 0.0 h
3. JanJanuary 2027: 0.0 h
4. FebFebruary 2027: 0.0 h
5. MarMarch 2027: 0.0 h
6. AprApril 2027: 1.0 h
7. MayMay 2027: 1.8 h
8. JunJune 2027: 2.8 h
9. JulJuly 2027: 2.3 h
10. AugAugust 2027: 1.5 h
11. SepSeptember 2027: 0.0 h
12. OctOctober 2027: 0.0 h

How to see it

• Get away from city lights: even an hour's drive makes a huge difference. Under a city sky it stays invisible.
• Give your eyes 20 minutes in the dark, and use a red light, not your phone screen.
• Look low towards the south (north from the southern hemisphere), towards Sagittarius and Scorpius.
• Phone: night mode on a tripod or propped steady, 10 s or more. Camera: wide lens, f/2.8, ISO 3200, 15–20 s.