When is Milky Way season in Slovakia?
On moonless nights the bright core of the Milky Way stands clear of the horizon in Slovakia from May to June. It climbs highest in the south: about 13° above the horizon in Cerová vrchovina Protected Landscape Area, Banská Bystrica Region, and only about 12° in Banská Bystrica, Banská Bystrica Region. Further north it never clears 10° while the sky is fully dark: 6 of the 57 places on Yozora Atlas in Slovakia have no Milky Way core nights at all.
When is Milky Way season in each part of Slovakia?
The months when most of a region’s places have the core up, how high it climbs at the region’s southern edge, the median core nights in 2027, and the darkest place to see it from.
| State or region | Season | Core height | Nights in 2027 | Darkest place to see it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitra Region | May to July | up to 13° | 35 | ŠaľaBortle 5, 35 nights |
| Bratislava Region | May to July | up to 13° | 34 | Záhorie Protected Landscape AreaBortle 4, 30 nights |
| Trnava Region | May to July | up to 13° | 34 | Dunajské luhy Protected Landscape AreaBortle 4, 37 nights |
| Banská Bystrica Region | May to July | up to 13° | 29 | Muránska planina National ParkBortle 4, 11 nights |
| Košice Region | May to June | up to 12° | 17 | Slovak Karst National ParkBortle 4, 23 nights |
| Trenčín Region | June | up to 12° | 10 | Ponitrie Protected Landscape AreaBortle 4, 27 nights |
| Prešov Region | May to June | up to 12° | 8 | the Poloniny Dark Sky ParkBortle 3, 8 nights |
| Žilina Region | May to June | up to 12° | 2 | the Veľká Fatra Dark Sky ParkBortle 4, 10 nights |
The darkest places in Slovakia with the most Milky Way nights
Bortle 1 to 3 places, by nights in 2027 with the core more than 10° up for an hour of moonless darkness.
- the Poloniny Dark Sky Park Prešov Region · Bortle 3 · core up to 12°8 nights
Which months have the most Milky Way nights in Slovakia?
The median place has the core up on the most moonless nights in June. The core rises before dawn in spring, is up most of the night in early summer and sets in the evening by autumn; each place page lists its own nights and the 2027 new moons.
How the Milky Way dates for Slovakia are calculated
The positions of the sun, the moon and the center of the Milky Way are calculated for every night of 2027 at each place. A night counts when the core stands more than 10° above the horizon for at least an hour while the sun is more than 18° below the horizon and the moon has set. These are calculated positions; whether a night is clear is only known closer to the date. How it works