The Night Sky in Ohio
This year's meteor showers, moon phases, and the darkest places to watch from in Ohio.
Data updated: August 2026Sources & method · Corrections
The best stargazing in Ohio comes on clear, moonless nights, and January, November and December give you the most of them to work with — about 14.7 hours of darkness at the December peak, computed from Ohio'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.
Ohio's biggest obstacle for stargazing is light pollution: the Cleveland–Akron, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Dayton corridors are large enough that their glow reaches well into the surrounding countryside. Still, genuinely dark skies aren't hard to find outside those corridors. Geauga County in the northeast holds a certified International Dark Sky Park with public telescopes and organized viewing nights, and nearby state and metro parks in the same corner of the state offer a similar escape from the city glow even without that certification. Farther south, the sparsely populated Appalachian foothills of southeastern Ohio — including the state's only national forest — hold some of the darkest naturally occurring skies left in the state, and for anyone who can't get to either region, the open farm country of west-central and northwestern Ohio still offers a noticeably darker sky than anywhere near the interstates.
Dark-sky places in Ohio
- Geauga Observatory Park — A certified International Dark Sky Park in Geauga County, run by the local park district, with public telescopes and scheduled viewing nights for visitors who want guidance rather than just a dark field.
- State and metro parks in northeast Ohio — Beyond the certified park in Geauga County, other state and metro parks across the same corner of northeast Ohio sit far enough from the Cleveland–Akron light dome to offer a noticeably darker sky, even without that formal certification.
- Wayne National Forest and the southeastern Ohio hill country — Ohio's only national forest sits in sparsely populated Appalachian foothills, well away from the light domes of the state's largest cities, with ridges and valleys that offer some of the darkest naturally occurring skies in the state.
- Rural farmland in west-central and northwestern Ohio — Away from the Dayton–Columbus–Toledo corridor, open farm country still offers noticeably darker skies than anywhere near the interstates — a reasonable option for stargazers who can't get to the northeast or southeast.
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 Ohio nights are worth the drive
The year's meteor peaks with the moon already worked out, and the darkest places in Ohio to watch them from.
The complete The Night Sky over Ohio
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 Ohio.