Long Beach Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Long Beach
- City
- Long Beach
- Country
- United States
- Latitude
- 33.7701
- Longitude
- -118.1937
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 17.27
- Bortle class
- Class 9 (Class 9)
- Darkness Quotient
- 18%
- Dataset
- April 2026
Inner city sky
Long Beach: The Practical Verdict
Long Beach, a mid-size city in southern California, faces highly challenging conditions for stargazing due to significant light pollution. With extreme urban light levels, its skies are heavily washed out, making meaningful deep-sky observations nearly impossible.
Within this sky, the Moon, planets, and the brightest stars are the most practical visual targets. Double stars and solar system events also remain accessible observations. However, faint nebulae and galaxies are firmly out of reach, and the Milky Way is entirely obscured.
For a substantial improvement, consider travelling to a darker site such as Ventura County, roughly 135 km to the west south-west. It offers much better conditions closer to Bortle 2 levels for serious deep-sky work.
At a Glance
- Overall
- Severe urban sky - This is a severely light-polluted urban sky. Only the Moon, planets, bright stars, and a few specialist targets remain practical.
- Milky Way
- Not visible - The Milky Way is not visible from this sky.
- Best targets from here
- Moon, planets, bright stars, double stars, solar system events, narrowband imaging only with care
- Do not prioritise
- visual deep-sky observing, broadband galaxies, reflection nebulae, widefield Milky Way
- Best nearby upgrade
- Ventura County, California sits about 135 km west south west and reaches Bortle 2, roughly 60x darker.
- Good dark window
- Long Beach's longest dark windows fall in December and January, with the shortest nights around June and July. Plan deep-sky sessions around the autumn and winter months for the best combination of long nights and true astronomical darkness.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you see the Milky Way from Long Beach?
No. Long Beach is a Bortle Class 9 sky with SQM 17.27, 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 Long Beach?
Long Beach is Bortle Class 9 (SQM 17.27), a severe urban sky for astronomy.
Is Long Beach good for stargazing?
Not for serious deep-sky observing. Long Beach is a severe urban sky where the Moon, planets, and a handful of bright targets are the realistic options from the city itself.
Is Long Beach good for astrophotography?
Broadband deep-sky imaging is heavily compromised from Long Beach and a Bortle 4 or darker site is strongly recommended. Even narrowband imaging is difficult from Long Beach without careful processing.
What can you observe from Long Beach?
Primary targets from Long Beach include Moon, planets, bright stars, double stars, solar system events. Targets such as visual deep-sky observing, broadband galaxies, reflection nebulae are not realistic from this sky.
Where are darker skies near Long Beach?
The closest meaningfully darker mapped site is Upper Cottonwood Road, California, about 49 km south south west of Long Beach, reaching Bortle 4.
When is the sky darkest in Long Beach?
The sky over Long Beach is darkest around January, December.
Is light pollution in Long Beach getting better or worse?
Long-term light pollution over Long Beach has been broadly stable across the available measurements.
north - poor
Heavy light pollution to the north. The lower 30 degrees of sky in this direction are unusable for faint targets.
north-north-east - poor
Heavy light pollution to the north-north-east. The lower 30 degrees of sky in this direction are unusable for faint targets.
north-east - poor
The north-east horizon shows a strong orange-white glow. Star counts drop sharply below about 25 degrees here.
east-north-east - poor
The lower east-north-east sky is heavily light-polluted. Only the brightest stars stand out near the horizon.
east - poor
Strong skyglow on the east horizon. Stars below about 30 degrees in this direction are largely lost.
east-south-east - marginal
Soft skyglow visible on the east-south-east horizon. Mid-brightness stars survive at low elevation; the faintest do not.
south-east - fair
The south-east sky is broadly dark with a small amount of glow at the horizon. Most objects in this direction are accessible.
south-south-east - fair
Faint glow on the south-south-east horizon. Most stars are visible to low elevation; only the faintest near the ground are affected.
south - fair
The south sky is broadly dark with a small amount of glow at the horizon. Most objects in this direction are accessible.
south-south-west - fair
A trace of skyglow near the south-south-west horizon. Stars are clear throughout this direction except very close to the ground.
south-west - fair
A faint diffuse glow on the south-west horizon. Stars are visible to low elevation, with minor losses near the ground.
west-south-west - fair
Light glow detectable on the west-south-west horizon. The effect fades quickly with elevation and does not affect overhead work.
west - marginal
Soft skyglow visible on the west horizon. Mid-brightness stars survive at low elevation; the faintest do not.
west-north-west - poor
Heavy light pollution to the west-north-west. The lower 30 degrees of sky in this direction are unusable for faint targets.
north-west - poor
Strong skyglow on the north-west horizon. Stars below about 30 degrees in this direction are largely lost.
north-north-west - poor
The north-north-west sky is washed out near the horizon. Most constellation stars in the lower sky here are not visible.
zenith - poor
The overhead sky is conspicuously pale. Stars brighter than magnitude 3 are visible; fainter ones are lost.
-
Upper Cottonwood Road, California
- Direction
- SSW
- Distance (km)
- 48.9
- SQM
- 20.81
- Bortle
- 4
-
Los Angeles County, California
- Direction
- SSW
- Distance (km)
- 101.3
- SQM
- 21.64
- Bortle
- 3
-
Ventura County, California
- Direction
- WSW
- Distance (km)
- 135
- SQM
- 21.72
- Bortle
- 2
-
Santa Barbara County, California
- Direction
- W
- Distance (km)
- 153.3
- SQM
- 21.68
- Bortle
- 3
-
Kern County, California
- Direction
- W
- Distance (km)
- 138.3
- SQM
- 20.14
- Bortle
- 6
-
Harmony Grove, California
- Direction
- SE
- Distance (km)
- 123.3
- SQM
- 19.58
- Bortle
- 7