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UT Dark Skies

Dark Sky Sites in Utah

Find the darkest skies in Utah for stargazing, astrophotography, and club events.

UT Nighttime Lights

2019 satellite image showing nighttime lights from the NOAA National Geophysical Data Center.

UT nighttime satellite image


UT Light Pollution

2015 light pollution map showing sky brightness at the zenith from World Atlas data. Colors correspond approximately to the Bortle scale (see sidebar). Gray areas are the darkest skies.

UT light pollution map


UT National Parks

Map showing names of national parks, forests, reserves, and other protected areas that often offer the darkest locations for stargazing.

UT parks map

Darkest Locations in UT

Depending on your gear and what you are looking at, there may be many locations that are dark enough. This table attempts to list the darkest sites possible in from a Bortle/SQM perspective.

      1. Dark site
      2. Bortle scale
      1. Antelope Island SP
      2. 2
      1. Arches NP
      2. 2
      1. Bryce Canyon NP
      2. 2
      1. Canyonlands NP
      2. 1
      1. Capitol Reef NP
      2. 1
      1. Cedar Breaks NM
      2. 2
      1. Dead Horse Point SP
      2. 2
      1. East Canyon State Park
      2. 2
      1. Fremont Indian SP
      2. 2
      1. Glen Canyon RA
      2. 1
      1. Goblin Valley SP
      2. 2
      1. Goosenecks SP
      2. 2
      1. Goshute IR
      2. 1
      1. Hovenweep NM
      2. 2
      1. Jordanelle SP
      2. 2
      1. Kodachrome Basin SP
      2. 2
      1. Natural Bridges NM
      2. 2
      1. North Fork Park
      2. 2
      1. Rainbow Bridge NM
      2. 2
      1. Steinaker SP
      2. 2
      1. Weber County North Fork Park
      2. 2