Stargazing tonight in Auckland
Night of Monday, July 27, 2026 · GMT+12 · 36.85°S, 174.76°E · Calculated July 26, 2026
Poor Moonlight or twilight covers almost the whole night.
Tonight at a glance
Sunset
17:31
Dark sky starts
19:01
Dark sky ends
05:53 (+1)
Sunrise
07:23 (+1)
Astronomical darkness
10.9 h
Moon-free darkness
None
Illumination
96%
Waxing gibbous
Your dark-sky window
True darkness begins at 19:01, when the sun is 18° below the horizon, and ends at 05:53 (+1) — 10.9 h in total. The moon is 96% illuminated tonight, which leaves None of sky that is both dark and moon-free.
The moon tonight
Moon phase
Waxing gibbous
Illumination
96%
Moonrise
15:00
Moonset
06:29 (+1)
The next 7 nights in Auckland
Best night this week: Sun, Aug 2 — 2.1 h of moon-free darkness.
| Date | Sunset | Dark sky starts | Astronomical darkness | Moon-free darkness | Illumination | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Jul 27 | 17:31 | 19:01 | 10.9 h | None | 96% | Poor |
| Tue, Jul 28 | 17:32 | 19:02 | 10.8 h | None | 99% | Poor |
| Wed, Jul 29 | 17:33 | 19:02 | 10.8 h | None | 100% | Poor |
| Thu, Jul 30 | 17:33 | 19:03 | 10.8 h | None | 99% | Poor |
| Fri, Jul 31 | 17:34 | 19:04 | 10.8 h | 0.0 h | 96% | Poor |
| Sat, Aug 1 | 17:35 | 19:04 | 10.7 h | 1.0 h | 92% | Poor |
| Sun, Aug 2 | 17:36 | 19:05 | 10.7 h | 2.1 h | 85% | Poor |
See the 30-night forecast for Auckland
What these numbers mean
Sunset is only the start. Faint stars, the Milky Way and meteor showers need astronomical darkness — the sun more than 18° below the horizon. Between sunset and that point the sky is still washed out by twilight. The moon matters just as much: a full moon can wipe out three magnitudes of faint detail even in a cloudless sky, so the number that actually decides your night is how many hours are dark and moon-free at the same time. That is what this page computes for Auckland, from scratch, for the exact date shown.
What this page does not tell you These are astronomical figures only. Cloud cover, haze and local light pollution are not included and can override everything above. The app adds a live cloud forecast on top of these numbers.
Other cities
Get tonight’s answer on your phone
Stargaze Tonight rates tonight’s observing conditions where you are, shows an hour-by-hour darkness strip, and tells you what is actually worth looking at. Free, ad-supported, no subscription.
Free with ads. No subscription, no locked features. Requires iPhone with iOS 17 or later.