Bunbury Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Bunbury
- City
- Bunbury
- Country
- Australia
- Latitude
- -33.3271
- Longitude
- 115.6414
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 19.19
- Bortle class
- Class 7 (Class 7)
- Darkness Quotient
- 36%
- Dataset
- March 2026
Suburban/urban transition
Stargazing in Bunbury
Bunbury is a coastal regional city in south-west Western Australia, known for its port, estuary setting and role as a major hub beyond Perth.
The city generally experiences High Light Pollution, with a Darkness Quotient of 36% — making it brighter than many inland country locations, though not as severely washed out as the largest metropolitan centres.
For practical observing from within the city, the most reliable targets are the Moon, planets, double stars and the brightest open clusters. A few showpiece deep-sky objects can still be attempted, but faint galaxies and subtle nebulae are largely overwhelmed by the urban skyglow.
The good news is that much darker skies are not especially far away. A strong improvement appears around 80 kilometres to the south, near Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia, where conditions become genuinely dark.
The map shows Bunbury as a clearly defined bright core, with a hot pink and red centre surrounded by yellow, green and then broader blue-grey halos. That pattern is typical of a concentrated urban light source spilling outward into the surrounding landscape.
The strongest glow is focused around the city itself, while the halo stretches across nearby settled areas rather than fading instantly at the urban edge. By contrast, the darkest parts of the map sit mainly away from the built-up corridor, especially toward the west over the darker background and in more distant areas to the south and south-east where the bright colours thin out quickly.
There are also several smaller isolated light domes scattered around the wider region, showing that Bunbury is not the only source of artificial brightness in view. Even so, it remains one of the dominant bright patches in its immediate surroundings, standing out strongly against much darker country and coastal areas beyond the main urban glow.
What the sky overhead is like
Looking straight up from Bunbury, the zenith sits in Bortle 7 territory, which means the sky overhead is noticeably brightened rather than truly dark. Familiar constellations are still easy enough to trace, but the background sky lacks the rich black appearance that brings out fainter stars.
In these conditions, the brightest stars and the more obvious asterisms remain visible, while weaker star fields begin to thin out. The Milky Way is generally difficult from the city itself, and the overall impression is of a suburban-to-urban sky with a persistent light dome affecting contrast.
The benefit in Bunbury is that the zenith improves quite quickly once you drive away from the city lights. That makes overhead observing much more rewarding even after a modest trip out of town.
north - good
About 15 kilometres north of Bunbury, the sky is already good, at around Bortle 4. Genuinely darker conditions are reachable further out, with Bortle 3 skies appearing at roughly 25 kilometres in this direction.
north-north-east - fair
About 15 kilometres north-north-east of the city, conditions are fair, around Bortle 5, so the sky is improved but still not especially dark. A better step up arrives farther out, with Bortle 3 reached only at roughly 200 kilometres in this direction.
north-east - fair
Around 15 kilometres to the north-east, the sky is fair at about Bortle 5, offering some relief from the city glow but still leaving plenty of background brightness. Darker Bortle 3 conditions are available farther out, at roughly 50 kilometres.
east-north-east - fair
At roughly 15 kilometres east-north-east, sky quality is fair, around Bortle 5. A more worthwhile improvement comes with extra distance, reaching Bortle 3 skies at about 50 kilometres, with even darker conditions beyond that.
east - fair
About 15 kilometres east of Bunbury, the sky is fair at around Bortle 5. A stronger dark-sky improvement appears by roughly 25 kilometres, where conditions reach Bortle 3.
east-south-east - good
At around 15 kilometres east-south-east, the sky is already good, around Bortle 4. Darker Bortle 3 conditions arrive by roughly 25 kilometres, so this is a promising direction for a relatively short drive.
south-east - good
About 15 kilometres south-east of the city, conditions are good, at roughly Bortle 4. A genuinely dark step up follows by around 25 kilometres, where the sky reaches Bortle 3, and it improves further farther out.
south-south-east - good
Around 15 kilometres south-south-east, the sky is good at about Bortle 4. Bortle 3 darkness is reached by roughly 25 kilometres, making this another strong direction for getting clear of Bunbury's glow.
south - good
About 15 kilometres south of Bunbury, the sky has improved to good quality, around Bortle 4. Darker Bortle 3 conditions appear by roughly 25 kilometres, with excellent skies farther beyond in the same general direction.
south-south-west - good
At roughly 15 kilometres south-south-west, the sky is good, around Bortle 4. A darker Bortle 3 sky is reached by about 25 kilometres, and the direction continues to improve with distance.
south-west - good
Around 15 kilometres south-west of the city, the sky is good at roughly Bortle 4. A further improvement to Bortle 3 comes by about 25 kilometres, so the urban glow drops away quite efficiently here.
west-south-west - excellent
By about 15 kilometres west-south-west, the sky is already excellent by quick-drive standards, reaching Bortle 3. It becomes darker still farther out, with Bortle 2 conditions appearing from around 50 kilometres.
west - excellent
Around 15 kilometres west of Bunbury, the sky is already excellent at about Bortle 3. This is one of the fastest-improving directions, with even darker Bortle 2 skies available farther out from roughly 50 kilometres.
west-north-west - excellent
At roughly 15 kilometres west-north-west, conditions are already excellent, around Bortle 3. The sky continues to improve with distance, reaching Bortle 2 from about 50 kilometres onward.
north-west - excellent
About 15 kilometres north-west of the city, the sky is excellent at around Bortle 3. It remains a rewarding direction for a short stargazing run, and it becomes even darker farther out from roughly 50 kilometres.
north-north-west - excellent
Around 15 kilometres north-north-west, the sky is already excellent, at about Bortle 3. It improves further with distance, reaching Bortle 2 by roughly 50 kilometres.
zenith - poor
Looking straight up from Bunbury itself, the zenith is poor by dark-sky standards, at Bortle 7. You can still pick out the brighter stars and familiar patterns, but the background sky is washed out enough that faint star fields and the Milky Way lose much of their impact.
-
Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia
- Direction
- S
- Distance (km)
- 80.8
- SQM
- 21.73
- Bortle
- 2
Milky Way, faint nebulae, deep-sky imaging
-
Near Shire of Kojonup, Western Australia
- Direction
- ESE
- Distance (km)
- 153.1
- SQM
- 21.66
- Bortle
- 3
Milky Way visible, broadband DSO imaging
-
Near Western Australia
- Direction
- SSW
- Distance (km)
- 70
- SQM
- 21.51
- Bortle
- 3
Milky Way visible, broadband DSO imaging
Genuinely dark skies are quite accessible from Bunbury, rather than requiring a very long expedition.
The nearest standout option is about 80 kilometres to the south, at Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia, where the sky reaches excellent dark-sky territory. There is also a noticeable improvement in several directions with a relatively short drive, especially once you are clear of the main urban glow.
-
Within 100 km
- Place
- Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia
- Direction
- S
- Distance (km)
- 80.8
- SQM
- 21.73
- Bortle
- 2
-
Within 200 km
- Place
- Near Shire of Kojonup, Western Australia
- Direction
- ESE
- Distance (km)
- 153.1
- SQM
- 21.66
- Bortle
- 3
Long-term sky trend
Bunbury's long-term trend points to a gradual brightening of the night sky over time. The earliest reading in the record was 19.47 SQM, compared with 19.19 SQM in the latest data, a small but definite decline in darkness.
The fitted trend works out at about -0.0155 SQM per year across 75 datasets. In plain terms, this is a slow change rather than a dramatic one, but over many years it does suggest that local skyglow has been creeping upwards.
The historical range is fairly broad, from 19.12 SQM at the bright end to 22 SQM at the darkest end, so short-term conditions and local factors clearly vary. Even so, the overall direction is towards a somewhat brighter urban sky than Bunbury had earlier in the record.
From within Bunbury, the most dependable targets are bright, high-contrast objects that can punch through the skyglow. The Moon and planets are largely unaffected, while double stars and the brightest open clusters can still be enjoyable visual targets.
A few showpiece deep-sky objects remain possible if you choose them carefully and observe on transparent, moonless nights. Bright nebulae such as M42 and the brightest globular clusters can still show something, but they will not have the contrast or richness they gain under darker skies.
For the Milky Way, faint galaxies, large diffuse nebulae and meteor watching, a darker site outside the city is a much better choice. Bunbury's advantage is that these better skies are reachable without an especially long drive.
- Moon
- planets
- double stars
- brightest open clusters
- bright nebulae such as M42
- the brightest globular clusters
- Milky Way
- faint galaxies
- broadband nebulae
- meteor showers
Can you see stars from Bunbury?
Yes — plenty of brighter stars are visible from Bunbury, and the main constellations are still easy to recognise. What you lose is the fainter background population that makes the sky look truly rich.
Can you see the Milky Way from Bunbury?
From within the city, the Milky Way is generally difficult and often quite muted because Bunbury sits under Bortle 7 skies. It becomes far more convincing once you get away from the urban glow.
What Bortle class is Bunbury?
Bunbury is Bortle Class 7, usually described as a suburban-to-urban transition sky. In practical terms, that means bright targets do well, but faint deep-sky observing is heavily compromised.
What is the SQM in Bunbury?
The measured sky brightness for Bunbury is 19.19 SQM. That is consistent with a noticeably light-polluted urban sky rather than a genuinely dark one.
Where are the nearest dark skies from Bunbury?
The nearest standout dark-sky site in the supplied data is Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia, about 80.8 kilometres to the south, where the sky reaches Bortle 2. Another strong option is Near Western Australia, 70 kilometres to the south-south-west, with Bortle 3 conditions.
Is Bunbury good for astrophotography?
It can be good for lunar, planetary and brighter deep-sky astrophotography, especially if you work with filters and careful processing. For wide-field Milky Way shots and faint nebula work, you will get much better results by driving out to darker skies.
How far do you need to drive from Bunbury for darker skies?
A noticeable improvement starts within a fairly short drive, and genuinely dark conditions are available at around 80 kilometres to the south near Near Shire of Nannup, Western Australia. Some directions also improve quickly enough that a modest trip out of town already makes a real difference.