The Night Sky in Maryland
This year's meteor showers, moon phases, and the darkest places to watch from in Maryland.
Data updated: August 2026Sources & method · Corrections
The best stargazing in Maryland comes on clear, moonless nights, and January, November and December give you the most of them to work with — about 14.6 hours of darkness at the December peak, computed from Maryland's own sun times. Below: this year's meteor-shower peaks and how bright the moon will be for each, a month-by-month new- and full-moon calendar, and the darkest places to watch from.
Maryland is a small, geographically varied state where night-sky quality depends heavily on how far you get from the Baltimore-Washington corridor, whose combined light dome washes out all but the brightest stars across much of the central part of the state. The best conditions are found in the rural, mountainous western panhandle and in pockets of the Eastern Shore and southern Maryland, where lower population density keeps skies noticeably darker. Humid summer haze can soften contrast, so the crisp, dry air of fall and winter nights tends to reward stargazers with the sharpest views. In Maryland a drive of an hour or two from the major metro areas can still turn up a respectably dark, star-filled sky.
Dark-sky places in Maryland
- Garrett County / Deep Creek Lake area (Savage River and Green Ridge State Forests) — Maryland's mountainous far-western panhandle is the most sparsely populated part of the state and sits well clear of the Baltimore-Washington light dome, making it the best regional bet for a genuinely dark sky. State forest land and campgrounds around Deep Creek Lake offer open, higher-elevation clearings away from nearby development.
- Assateague Island National Seashore — This protected Atlantic barrier island has almost no development, and with open ocean to the east and marsh to the west, campers get a wide, unobstructed horizon. It's a solid pick for coastal stargazing once you're away from day-use parking areas and campground lighting.
- Catoctin Mountain Park / Cunningham Falls State Park area, Frederick County — Closer to the D.C. and Baltimore metro areas but still forested and rural, this stretch of the Catoctin Mountains offers noticeably darker skies than the urban core, especially from higher clearings away from park roads and visitor facilities.
- Rural farmland on the Eastern Shore and in Southern Maryland — Away from Salisbury, Annapolis, and the Bay Bridge corridor, the flat, open agricultural landscape of the Eastern Shore and the peninsula south of Washington offers long sightlines and comparatively little ground light. Checking a light-pollution map for back roads away from small-town centers is worth the effort on a clear night.
Ranger programs, star parties and opening hours change season to season — check with the site before you drive out.
The sky this month (August)
The moon in August: New moon Aug 12 · Full moon Aug 28. Darkest skies fall around Aug 7–Aug 17, near the new moon.
Meteor showers peaking in August:
| Meteor shower | Peak | Meteors/hr | Moon | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perseids | Aug 12 | 100 | 0% near-new | late evening to dawn |
Meteor showers in 2026
| Meteor shower | Peak | Meteors/hr | Moon | Best time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quadrantids | Jan 3 | 120 | 100% near-full | after midnight into dawn |
| Lyrids | Apr 22 | 18 | 29% crescent | after midnight |
| Eta Aquariids | May 6 | 50 | 83% gibbous | pre-dawn (better in the South) |
| Southern Delta Aquariids | Jul 30 | 25 | 100% near-full | pre-dawn |
| Perseids | Aug 12 | 100 | 0% near-new | late evening to dawn |
| Draconids | Oct 8 | 10 | 7% crescent | early evening |
| Orionids | Oct 21 | 20 | 74% gibbous | after midnight |
| Southern Taurids | Nov 5 | 5 | 16% crescent | late evening (slow, bright fireballs) |
| Northern Taurids | Nov 12 | 5 | 8% crescent | late evening (slow, bright fireballs) |
| Leonids | Nov 17 | 15 | 48% quarter moon | after midnight |
| Geminids | Dec 14 | 150 | 22% crescent | evening to dawn (best all year) |
| Ursids | Dec 22 | 10 | 95% near-full | after midnight |
Moon phases in 2026
| Month | New moon (darkest) | Full moon |
|---|---|---|
| January | Jan 18 | Jan 3 |
| February | Feb 17 | Feb 1 |
| March | Mar 18 | Mar 3 |
| April | Apr 17 | Apr 1 |
| May | May 16 | May 1, May 31 |
| June | Jun 14 | Jun 29 |
| July | Jul 14 | Jul 29 |
| August | Aug 12 | Aug 28 |
| September | Sep 10 | Sep 26 |
| October | Oct 10 | Oct 26 |
| November | Nov 9 | Nov 24 |
| December | Dec 8 | Dec 23 |
Which Maryland nights are worth the drive
The year's meteor peaks with the moon already worked out, and the darkest places in Maryland to watch them from.
The complete The Night Sky over Maryland
A stargazing companion for the state that does not expire: the meteor calendar, the darkest places, and how to read any year's sky.
Want it on paper? See the printable The Night Sky over Maryland.