How dark the sky is at Steens Mountain: Bortle Class 1, excellent dark-sky site
The zenith sky here reads 22.00 magnitudes per square arcsecond. That is as dark as a natural sky gets: almost all the glow comes from airglow and starlight, not lamps.
Milky Way
The Milky Way casts faint shadows; the Scorpius and Sagittarius star clouds show structure to the naked eye
Zodiacal light
Zodiacal light, the gegenschein and the zodiacal band are all visible
Faintest naked-eye stars
Magnitude 7.6 to 8.0 overhead
Naked eye
M33 is a direct-vision naked-eye object; airglow makes the sky faintly green near the horizon
At the eyepiece
Galaxies to magnitude 14 and fainter show in a 200 mm telescope; the limit is your eye, not the sky
Sky brightness and class come from the World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness (Falchi et al. 2016, CC BY-NC 4.0), with natural skyglow added. On the night, haze, smoke, humidity and the Moon set the real limit; see every Bortle Class 1 place.
What's up from Steens Mountain by season
At latitude 42.7°N, the north celestial pole stands 43° above the horizon, close to Polaris. Every star north of declination -47° rises at some time of year. The Milky Way core in Sagittarius climbs to 18° above the southern horizon. These are the constellations well placed, 35° or more above the horizon, at about 10 pm in the middle of each season, brightest first.
January evenings (winter): Auriga, Orion, and Canis Minor
- AurigaOverhead, brightest star Capella
- OrionHigh in the south, brightest star Rigel
- Canis MinorIn the southeast, brightest star Procyon
- TaurusHigh in the southwest, brightest star Aldebaran
- GeminiHigh in the southeast, brightest star Pollux
- Ursa MajorIn the northeast, brightest star Alioth
- PerseusHigh in the west, brightest star Mirfak
- AriesIn the west, brightest star Hamal
Also well placed: Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Triangulum, Lynx, Cancer, Monoceros, Leo Minor, Camelopardalis.
April evenings (spring): Bootes, Virgo, and Leo
- BootesHigh in the east, brightest star Arcturus
- VirgoIn the southeast, brightest star Spica
- LeoHigh in the southwest, brightest star Regulus
- Ursa MajorOverhead, brightest star Alioth
- Ursa MinorIn the north, brightest star Polaris
- Corona BorealisIn the east, brightest star Alphecca
- Canes VenaticiOverhead, brightest star Cor Caroli
- LynxHigh in the northwest, brightest star Alpha Lyncis
Also well placed: Cancer, Leo Minor, Camelopardalis, Coma Berenices, Sextans.
July evenings (summer): Bootes, Lyra, and Aquila
- BootesHigh in the west, brightest star Arcturus
- LyraOverhead, brightest star Vega
- AquilaIn the southeast, brightest star Altair
- CygnusHigh in the east, brightest star Deneb
- Ursa MinorHigh in the north, brightest star Polaris
- OphiuchusIn the south, brightest star Rasalhague
- Corona BorealisHigh in the west, brightest star Alphecca
- DracoHigh in the north, brightest star Eltanin
Also well placed: Cepheus, Hercules, Canes Venatici, Sagitta, Delphinus, Lacerta, Scutum, Vulpecula.
October evenings (fall): Lyra, Cygnus, and Perseus
- LyraIn the west, brightest star Vega
- CygnusHigh in the west, brightest star Deneb
- PerseusIn the northeast, brightest star Mirfak
- AriesIn the east, brightest star Hamal
- AndromedaOverhead, brightest star Alpheratz
- DracoIn the northwest, brightest star Eltanin
- CassiopeiaHigh in the northeast, brightest star Schedar
- PegasusHigh in the southwest, brightest star Enif
Also well placed: Cepheus, Aquarius, Triangulum, Pisces, Delphinus, Lacerta, Equuleus, Camelopardalis, Vulpecula.
Showpieces from Steens Mountain through the year
| Sight | Constellation | January | April | July | October |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andromeda Galaxy (M31) | Andromeda | In the northwest | - | - | Overhead |
| Orion Nebula (M42) | Orion | In the south | - | - | - |
| Pleiades (M45) | Taurus | High in the southwest | - | - | In the east |
| Double Cluster | Perseus | High in the northwest | - | - | High in the northeast |
| Hercules Cluster (M13) | Hercules | - | In the east | Overhead | - |
| Whirlpool Galaxy (M51) | Canes Venatici | - | High in the east | In the northwest | - |
| Ring Nebula (M57) | Lyra | - | - | Overhead | In the west |
At about 10 pm on the 15th of each month; a dash means the sight is below 25° then.
Never set from Steens Mountain
Only skim the southern horizon from Steens Mountain
Never rise from Steens Mountain
Where to set up at Steens Mountain
The coordinates on this page point to Fish Lake campground, at 2,256 m (7,400 ft): 42.740°N, 118.644°W.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Open the larger map · Directions. Arrive before dark, park facing away from other observers, and use red light only.
Steens Mountain among the dark sky places of Oregon
Each dot is a dark sky place, colored by Bortle class; select one for its page. Diamonds are star parties. See Oregon dark sky places for the full list, darkest first.
Camping and lodging at Steens Mountain
The nearest town with motels or inns is Frenchglen, OR. Check the official site for campgrounds and overnight rules; many parks close their gates at night, so ask about after-dark access.
Dark sky places nearest Steens Mountain
| Place | Where | Bortle | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alvord Desert | Oregon | 1 | 28 km (17 mi) |
| Malheur National Wildlife Refuge | Oregon | 1 | 61 km (38 mi) |
| Hart Mountain National Antelope Refuge | Oregon | 1 | 85 km (53 mi) |
| Sheldon National Wildlife Refuge | Nevada | 1 | 114 km (71 mi) |
| Oregon Outback Dark Sky Sanctuary | Oregon | 1 | 126 km (78 mi) |
| Chandler State Wayside | Oregon | 1 | 140 km (87 mi) |
| Massacre Rim Wilderness Study Area | Nevada | 1 | 142 km (88 mi) |
| Goose Lake State Recreation Area | Oregon | 1 | 161 km (100 mi) |
Star parties near Steens Mountain
| Star party | Near | Distance | Usual timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon Star Party | Prineville, Oregon | 209 km (130 mi) | August new moon |
| Idaho Star Party | Mountain Home, Idaho | 241 km (150 mi) | September new moon |
| Golden State Star Party | Adin, California | 258 km (160 mi) | Summer new moon |
| Great Basin Astronomy Festival | Baker, Nevada | 558 km (347 mi) | September |
Planning a trip? Astrotourism in Oregon puts the dark sky places, observatories, clubs, star parties, planetariums and science centers of the state on one map, with the best night out worked out.
Observatories and astronomy clubs near Steens Mountain
No observatory or astronomy club on the list is near Steens Mountain.
See observatories and astronomy clubs in Oregon. Local clubs often hold their star parties at dark sky places like this one.
Steens Mountain record
Every value in the dark sky places dataset for Steens Mountain
| Park | 526 |
|---|---|
| Name | Steens Mountain |
| TypeLong | Cooperative Management and Protection Area |
| Type1 | CMPA |
| Bortle | 1 |
| Statelong | Oregon |
| State | OR |
| Web | https://www.blm.gov/visit/steens-mountain-cmpa |
| Lat | 42.74034 |
| Lon | -118.64373 |
| LatLonSpot | Fish Lake campground |
| Elevation_m | 2256 |
| LandManager | Bureau of Land Management |
| Status | Open |
| Lodging | Frenchglen, OR |
| Sources | https://blm.gov/visit/fish-lake-campground |
| SQM | 22.00 |
From the site's dark sky places dataset (parks_q426). The sky by season is computed from the coordinates.