Poringland Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Poringland
- City
- Poringland
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Latitude
- 52.5671
- Longitude
- 1.3496
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 20.70
- Bortle class
- Class 5 (Class 5)
- Darkness Quotient
- 62%
- Dataset
- July 2026
Suburban sky
Poringland: The Practical Verdict
Poringland is a hamlet situated to the south-east of Norwich, in the United Kingdom. The sky quality here is compromised but still usable for astronomy, falling within a low light pollution tier. While the Milky Way is usually weak and conditional, the primary limiting factor is the light dome glow emanating from Norwich to the north-north-west.
From this location, the sky offers viable viewing for the Moon, planets, and bright open clusters. Double stars and globular clusters are also notable targets, while faint galaxies and low surface-brightness nebulae remain elusive. The north-west horizon is the brightest, contrasting with the south, which provides the cleanest view.
Adjacent regions to Poringland offer limited upgrades. For those seeking slightly darker skies, a reasonable improvement is possible by travelling roughly 35 km north-north-west, where skies are marginally more refined.
At a Glance
- Overall
- Compromised but usable - This is a compromised but usable sky. Bright deep-sky objects and some imaging are possible, but contrast is noticeably reduced.
- Milky Way
- Weak or conditional - The Milky Way is usually weak from this sky and may only appear as a faint suggestion under good conditions.
- Best targets from here
- Moon, planets, double stars, bright open clusters, globular clusters, narrowband nebulae
- Do not prioritise
- faint galaxies, reflection nebulae, low surface-brightness nebulae, serious Milky Way photography
- Limited nearby upgrade
- 33 km NNW is the strongest nearby option but remains Bortle 3; the improvement is real but modest.
- Moderate dark window
- Poringland's limiting factor is not only light pollution. Around midsummer, Poringland loses true astronomical darkness entirely, so deep-sky observing and imaging are strongly seasonal. Plan serious sessions around the darker months.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you see the Milky Way from Poringland?
Conditionally. From Poringland the Milky Way may show as a faint suggestion under transparent, moonless conditions, but it lacks dark-site contrast.
What Bortle class is Poringland?
Poringland is Bortle Class 5 (SQM 20.70), a compromised but usable for astronomy.
Is Poringland good for stargazing?
Partly. Poringland offers a compromised but usable where many bright targets remain accessible, but the faintest deep-sky work is compromised.
Is Poringland good for astrophotography?
Broadband deep-sky imaging is heavily compromised from Poringland and a Bortle 4 or darker site is strongly recommended. Narrowband imaging of bright emission nebulae remains viable from Poringland with appropriate Ha or OIII filters.
What can you observe from Poringland?
Primary targets from Poringland include Moon, planets, double stars, bright open clusters, globular clusters. Targets such as faint galaxies, reflection nebulae, low surface-brightness nebulae are not realistic from this sky.
Where are darker skies near Poringland?
The closest meaningfully darker mapped site is 28 km SSE, about 28 km south south east of Poringland, reaching Bortle 3.
When is the sky darkest in Poringland?
The sky over Poringland is darkest around January, December. Significant summer limitation: around 70 nights per year have no true astronomical darkness.
Is light pollution in Poringland getting better or worse?
There is not yet enough long-term data to give a confident trend for Poringland.
north - good
The north sky is dark to the horizon. Faint targets are accessible at all elevations here.
north-north-east - good
Dark sky in the north-north-east direction with no obvious skyglow. Suitable for faint-object work at low elevation.
north-east - excellent
No artificial glow on the north-east horizon. Faint deep-sky objects in this direction are accessible at low elevation.
east-north-east - excellent
The east-north-east horizon is fully dark. Faint stars are visible to within a few degrees of the ground and the Milky Way reaches the horizon on clear nights.
east - excellent
Dark sky to the east horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
east-south-east - excellent
Dark sky to the east-south-east horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
south-east - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the south-east. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
south-south-east - excellent
Dark sky to the south-south-east horizon. The Milky Way can be traced to the ground in this direction.
south - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the south. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
south-south-west - excellent
Clean, fully dark horizon to the south-south-west. Star counts remain high right down to the ground.
south-west - excellent
The south-west horizon is dark to the unaided eye. Faint stars are visible at the lowest elevations.
west-south-west - excellent
No artificial glow on the west-south-west horizon. Faint deep-sky objects in this direction are accessible at low elevation.
west - good
Dark sky in the west direction with no obvious skyglow. Suitable for faint-object work at low elevation.
west-north-west - good
The west-north-west sky is dark to the horizon. Faint targets are accessible at all elevations here.
north-west - good
The north-west horizon is dark. Faint stars are visible close to the ground.
north-north-west - good
No noticeable light pollution to the north-north-west. The sky in this direction is dark to the horizon.
zenith - good
Overhead is workably dark. Limiting magnitude is around 5.5 and the Milky Way is detectable.
-
28 km SSE
- Direction
- SSE
- Distance (km)
- 27.7
- SQM
- 21.47
- Bortle
- 3
-
33 km NNW
- Direction
- NNW
- Distance (km)
- 33.1
- SQM
- 21.49
- Bortle
- 3
-
18 km SE
- Direction
- SE
- Distance (km)
- 17.8
- SQM
- 21.25
- Bortle
- 4
-
19 km NE
- Direction
- NE
- Distance (km)
- 19.2
- SQM
- 21.20
- Bortle
- 4
-
26 km SE
- Direction
- SE
- Distance (km)
- 26
- SQM
- 21.22
- Bortle
- 4
-
42 km WNW
- Direction
- WNW
- Distance (km)
- 42
- SQM
- 21.37
- Bortle
- 3