The best dark-sky places in the United States

About 80% of people in North America cannot see the Milky Way from home. Light pollution makes the night sky grey. A truly dark sky, on a clear night with no Moon, shows about 2,500 stars at a time.

The places in this list are certified by DarkSky International. A certified place controls its lights and protects its sky, to keep it dark.

Each name opens the live sky map at that place. It shows the sky there now.

The Southwest

The deserts and plateaus of the Southwest have dry air, few towns and many clear nights.

• Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah. The first International Dark Sky Park in the world, named in 2007. Its sky is one of the darkest in the country.
• Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah. A DarkSky park since 2019. The park runs astronomy programs, and holds a festival each year.
• Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. A DarkSky park since 2019, after the park changed about 2 thirds of its outdoor lights.
• Great Basin National Park, Nevada. A DarkSky park since 2016, in the remote mountains of eastern Nevada. The ridges around it block the glow of far cities.
• Death Valley National Park, California. A DarkSky park with the top Gold Tier rating, since 2013. In the south of the park, you can see the glow of Las Vegas on the horizon.
• Cosmic Campground, New Mexico. The first International Dark Sky Sanctuary in North America, in the Gila National Forest. The nearest big source of light is more than 65 km away, in Arizona.

Texas

• Big Bend National Park, Texas. A DarkSky park with the Gold Tier rating, since 2012. It is on the border with Mexico, far from big cities. Measurements by the park service found some of the darkest skies in the lower 48 states here.

The Northwest

• Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve, Idaho. The first International Dark Sky Reserve in the United States, named in 2017. It covers the Sawtooth Mountains and the towns near them.

The East

Dark places are rare in the crowded East. This one is famous.

• Cherry Springs State Park, Pennsylvania. The second International Dark Sky Park in the world. It is on a high plateau in the forests of the north of the state, about 700 m up, so the lights of the towns nearby are below the horizon.

Before you go

1. Pick a night near the new Moon. A bright Moon hides the faint stars.
2. Check the weather. A dark place does not help under clouds.
3. Give your eyes 20 to 30 minutes in the dark, and use a red light.
4. In the desert, nights get cold. Bring warm clothes, also in summer.

For places near you, see all stargazing places by country.