Altitude
0° is the horizon and 90° is the zenith. A very low planet can be hidden by haze, buildings, trees or mountains.
Observable sky
Planets visible tonight from your location
Enter a city or use your device location. DailyZodiac calculates which planets will be above the horizon during the dark part of the night, where to look and when they will be highest in the sky.
Your observation
Where are you observing from?
Real visibility changes with latitude, longitude and time. The city is used only to obtain the correct coordinates and time zone.
Your location is used only for the requested calculation and is not stored in cookies or localStorage. If you use device location, coordinates are sent to the server by POST and the response is not cached.
Tonight's sky
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After civil twilight
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Sun now
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Good geometric conditions
Low on the horizon
Optical aid recommended
How to read the results
When is a planet actually observable?
Being above the horizon is not enough. The calculation therefore uses the dark part of the night and finds when each planet reaches its greatest altitude for the selected location.
Direction
Azimuth tells you where to look around the horizon: north, east, south, west and the directions in between.
Magnitude
Apparent magnitude measures brightness: smaller values, including negative numbers, indicate brighter objects.
Civil night
We use the period when the Sun is at least 6° below the horizon. This is a repeatable astronomical criterion, not a guarantee of a perfectly dark sky.
Before you go outside
The calculation cannot see clouds, haze or buildings
DailyZodiac calculates sky geometry and apparent planetary brightness. Weather, light pollution, terrain and local obstructions can make an observation difficult or impossible even when the geometry is favorable.
Frequently asked questions
Which planets are visible tonight?
It depends on your location and time. The calculation checks Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune during the dark part of the night.
What determines whether a planet is visible?
Altitude, apparent brightness, sky darkness, weather, light pollution and local obstructions all matter.
What does best observing time mean?
It is the point during civil night when the planet reaches its greatest altitude above the horizon for the selected location. The value is estimated by regular sampling.
Do I need a telescope to see the planets?
Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn can be visible to the naked eye in suitable conditions. Uranus is very difficult without dark skies and Neptune normally requires optical aid.
