Dubbo Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Dubbo
- City
- Dubbo
- Country
- Australia
- Latitude
- -32.2569
- Longitude
- 148.6011
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 19.62
- Bortle class
- Class 6 (Class 6)
- Darkness Quotient
- 42%
- Dataset
- April 2026
Bright suburban sky
Dubbo: The Practical Verdict
Dubbo, a small city in New South Wales, offers a sky under moderate light pollution conditions. The overall result is a limiting suburban sky that does not permit viewing dim celestial objects or the Milky Way.
Observing here will focus on brighter celestial spectacles. The Moon and planets are visible, along with prominent double stars and the most luminous open clusters. However, fainter targets such as broadband galaxies and detailed Milky Way photography are significantly subdued by the sky's brightness.
Heading east to Gibbergunyah Road, about 200 km away, significantly improves conditions with much darker skies suitable for deep-sky observations.
At a Glance
- Overall
- Limited suburban sky - This is a limited sky for astronomy. The brightest targets remain accessible, but faint deep-sky observing is heavily compromised.
- Milky Way
- Not visible - The sky background is generally too bright for a reliable Milky Way view.
- Best targets from here
- Moon, planets, double stars, bright open clusters, narrowband imaging, bright nebula cores
- Do not prioritise
- broadband galaxies, reflection nebulae, visual faint nebulae, Milky Way photography
- Best nearby upgrade
- Gibbergunyah Road, New South Wales sits about 199 km east and reaches Bortle 3, roughly 6.5x darker.
- Good dark window
- Dubbo's longest dark windows fall in June and July, with the shortest nights around December and January. For deep-sky imaging, winter gives the best combination of long nights and true astronomical darkness.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you see the Milky Way from Dubbo?
No. Dubbo is a Bortle Class 6 sky with SQM 19.62, so the Milky Way is not visible from the city. For Milky Way photography, look for a Bortle 4 or darker site.
What Bortle class is Dubbo?
Dubbo is Bortle Class 6 (SQM 19.62), a limited suburban sky for astronomy.
Is Dubbo good for stargazing?
Not for serious deep-sky observing. Dubbo is a limited suburban sky where the Moon, planets, and a handful of bright targets are the realistic options from the city itself.
Is Dubbo good for astrophotography?
Broadband deep-sky imaging is heavily compromised from Dubbo and a Bortle 4 or darker site is strongly recommended. Narrowband imaging of bright emission nebulae remains viable from Dubbo with appropriate Ha or OIII filters.
What can you observe from Dubbo?
Primary targets from Dubbo include Moon, planets, double stars, bright open clusters, narrowband imaging. Targets such as broadband galaxies, reflection nebulae, visual faint nebulae are not realistic from this sky.
Where are darker skies near Dubbo?
The closest meaningfully darker mapped site is Upper Turon, New South Wales, about 144 km south east of Dubbo, reaching Bortle 4.
When is the sky darkest in Dubbo?
The sky over Dubbo is darkest around June, July.
Is light pollution in Dubbo getting better or worse?
Long-term light pollution over Dubbo has been broadly stable across the available measurements.
north - excellent
The north horizon is fully dark. Faint stars are visible to within a few degrees of the ground and the Milky Way reaches the horizon on clear nights.
north-north-east - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the north-north-east. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
north-east - excellent
The north-east horizon is fully dark. Faint stars are visible to within a few degrees of the ground and the Milky Way reaches the horizon on clear nights.
east-north-east - excellent
The east-north-east horizon is dark to the unaided eye. Faint stars are visible at the lowest elevations.
east - excellent
No artificial glow on the east horizon. Faint deep-sky objects in this direction are accessible at low elevation.
east-south-east - excellent
Dark sky to the east-south-east horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
south-east - excellent
The south-east horizon is dark to the unaided eye. Faint stars are visible at the lowest elevations.
south-south-east - excellent
Dark sky to the south-south-east horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
south - excellent
Dark sky to the south horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
south-south-west - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the south-south-west. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
south-west - excellent
No artificial glow on the south-west horizon. Faint deep-sky objects in this direction are accessible at low elevation.
west-south-west - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the west-south-west. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
west - excellent
The west horizon is fully dark. Faint stars are visible to within a few degrees of the ground and the Milky Way reaches the horizon on clear nights.
west-north-west - excellent
No artificial glow on the west-north-west horizon. Faint deep-sky objects in this direction are accessible at low elevation.
north-west - excellent
Dark sky to the north-west horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
north-north-west - excellent
The north-north-west horizon is dark to the unaided eye. Faint stars are visible at the lowest elevations.
zenith - fair
Moderate light pollution overhead. The Milky Way cannot be seen and the star field is sparser than at a dark site.
-
Upper Turon, New South Wales
- Direction
- SE
- Distance (km)
- 143.5
- SQM
- 21.27
- Bortle
- 4
-
Gibbergunyah Road, New South Wales
- Direction
- E
- Distance (km)
- 198.9
- SQM
- 21.66
- Bortle
- 3
-
Peelwood, New South Wales
- Direction
- SSE
- Distance (km)
- 220
- SQM
- 21.64
- Bortle
- 3