Monongahela National Forest

How dark the sky is at Monongahela: Bortle Class 3, rural sky

The zenith sky here reads 21.88 magnitudes per square arcsecond. That is about 1.1 times the brightness of a pristine natural sky (22.0), the extra coming from artificial light scattered in the air.

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 3 place.

What's up from Monongahela by season

At latitude 39.0°N, the north celestial pole stands 39° above the horizon, close to Polaris. Every star north of declination -51° rises at some time of year. The Milky Way core in Sagittarius climbs to 22° 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.

Showpieces from Monongahela through the year

At about 10 pm on the 15th of each month; a dash means the sight is below 25° then.

Never set from Monongahela

• Camelopardalis
• Cassiopeia
• Cepheus
• Draco
• Ursa Major
• Ursa Minor

Only skim the southern horizon from Monongahela

• Centaurus
• Grus
• Lupus
• Phoenix
• Telescopium
• Vela

Never rise from Monongahela

• Apus
• Ara
• Carina
• Chamaeleon
• Circinus
• Crux
• Dorado
• Horologium
• Hydrus
• Indus
• Mensa
• Musca
• Norma
• Octans
• Pavo
• Pictor
• Reticulum
• Triangulum Australe
• Tucana
• Volans

Where to set up at Monongahela

The coordinates on this page point to Red Creek Campground, Dolly Sods, at 1,029 m (3,380 ft): 39.033°N, 79.315°W.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Open the larger map · Directions. Arrive before dark, park facing away from other observers, and use red light only.

Monongahela among the dark sky places of West Virginia

Each dot is a dark sky place, colored by Bortle class; select one for its page. Diamonds are star parties. See West Virginia dark sky places for the full list, darkest first.

Camping and lodging at Monongahela

The nearest town with motels or inns is Davis, WV. 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 Monongahela

Star parties near Monongahela

Planning a trip? Astrotourism in West Virginia 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 Monongahela

Observatories within 100 km

• Stokesville ObservatoryStokesville, Virginia, 77 km (48 mi), research observatory
• Green Bank 140 Foot TelescopeGreen Bank, West Virginia, 80 km (50 mi), research observatory
• Green Bank Telescope (GBT)Green Bank, West Virginia, 81 km (50 mi), open to the public
• WVU Planetarium and Observatory (Tomchin Observatory)Morgantown, West Virginia, 86 km (54 mi), open to the public
• Good Hope ObservatoryClarksburg, West Virginia, 98 km (61 mi), open to the public

Nearest astronomy clubs

• Central Appalachian Astronomy ClubGrafton, West Virginia, 70 km (44 mi)
• Cumberland Astronomy ClubGrantsville, Maryland, 76 km (47 mi). Meets 3rd Friday monthly, 7:30 pm
• WVU Astronomy ClubMorgantown, West Virginia, 88 km (55 mi)
• Shenandoah Astronomical SocietyWinchester, Virginia, 91 km (57 mi). Meets Monthly, 4th Monday
• Charlottesville Astronomical SocietyCharlottesville, Virginia, 131 km (81 mi). Meets 1st Wednesday monthly, 7-9 pm

See observatories and astronomy clubs in West Virginia. Local clubs often hold their star parties at dark sky places like this one.

Monongahela record

From the site's dark sky places dataset (parks_q426). The sky by season is computed from the coordinates.