Scope Nights Astronomy Weather 4+

March 2023 - Currently works for USA & UK only due to global weather service changes. A bug fix will be available soon. Clear Skies, Martin.

"Every amateur astronomer yearns for clear, dark skies, and this exhaustive app helps you find them."
- Sky At Night Magazine 2017

"Several astronomy-oriented weather apps are available, but Scope Nights has become my favorite… it does a fine job of summarizing the data in a clear and understandable fashion."
- Sky & Telescope Magazine 2015

"Conventional weather forecasts meet the needs of Earthly dwellers; news of cloud cover when sensible folk are asleep is hardly required. Now via this wonderful App… local forecasts for nocturnal weather… are now available."
- Astronomy Now Magazine 2012

If you’re a stargazer, astronomer or astrophotographer, analysing conventional weather forecasts for favourable night time conditions can be very time consuming, you just want to know when to plan your stargazing trip or set up your telescope. Scope Nights analyses night time weather forecast data for you and shows exactly when and where to go for the darkest and clearest skies, as well as offering customisable stargazing ratings to suit your telescope and observing habits, stargazing notifications, and a detailed light pollution map showing nearby dark sky sites and observatories. Finding clear dark skies and discovering the night sky has never been easier!


PLAN YOUR OBSERVING WITH CUSTOM STARGAZING RATINGS

• View at a glance which nights will be good for astronomy using smart weather analysis with clear stargazing ratings and animated weather icons to quickly see if it’s worth preparing your telescope or planning a stargazing trip

• Create custom stargazing ratings using observing thresholds for moon phase, wind, humidity and temperature. Choose night, evening or morning coverage to suit when you observe, the type of telescope, and the type of observing you plan to do.

• View at a glance which of your favourite Scope Sites will have the most suitable conditions


FIND DARK SKY SITES & OBSERVATORIES

• Find nearby dark sky sites with the clearest skies using a detailed light pollution map derived from the latest NASA satellite data

• Searchable lists and dark sky map showing certified dark sky places, major astronomical observatories and robotic telescopes


DETAILED ASTRONOMY FORECASTS

• Long range astronomy forecasts for any location worldwide, compare up to 10 locations up to 10 nights ahead

• Local 3-hourly forecasts for UK & USA updated hourly using the best forecast data available direct from the UK Met Office and the US NOAA National Weather Service


CUSTOM STARGAZING NOTIFICATIONS

• Receive accurate notifications of good or fair stargazing ratings based on your custom thresholds, well before sunset so you can prepare for your observing session

• App badge showing the number of sites with good observing conditions for tonight


SHARE STARGAZING FORECASTS

• Share astronomy weather reports with fellow astronomers via email, social media or print them out for your observatory


DETAILED CUSTOM ASTRONOMY FORECASTS

• Night time specific astronomy forecasts from sunset to sunrise

• Forecast coverage to suit when you observe: All Night, Evening or Morning

• Detailed colour coded forecasts:
- Moon phase percentage & altitude
- Cloud cover
- Precipitation probability
- Relative humidity
- Minimum temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit
- Wind direction
- Wind speed & gusts in Mph, Knots, Kph or Mps

• Moonrise and moonset times

• Sunrise & sunset times

• Wind speed gust sensitivity switch for those with large telescopes or in exposed locations


REQUIREMENTS
• Requires a device with iOS 9.3 or later
• Requires Internet access over a Wi-Fi or cellular data connection
• Requires Location Services be enabled to automatically find local astronomy forecast
• Requires Background Services be enabled to get stargazing notifications