Recife Stargazing & Astronomy Report
Light pollution and stargazing locations near Recife
- City
- Recife
- Country
- Brazil
- Latitude
- -8.0476
- Longitude
- -34.8770
Key Sky Quality Metrics
- SQM (mag/arcsec²)
- 17.81
- Bortle class
- Class 9 (Class 9)
- Darkness Quotient
- 21%
- Dataset
- August 2026
Inner city sky
Recife: The Practical Verdict
Recife, a major city in Brazil's Pernambuco region, presents a challenging stargazing environment. Its severe urban sky, classified as Bortle 9, results in high light pollution, significantly limiting visual astronomy prospects.
The Milky Way is entirely invisible here, with stargazing opportunities primarily focused on the Moon, planets, and bright stars. Narrowband imaging is feasible but requires careful constraints to mitigate the pervasive light pollution. Deep-sky observing is largely unproductive in this environment.
To escape Recife's light pollution and access deeper space, consider a trip to Soledade, Paraíba, located about 210 km to the west northwest. This site offers a notable improvement with a Bortle 4 sky, suitable for more serious astronomical pursuits.
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
- Soledade, Paraíba sits about 208 km west north west and reaches Bortle 4, roughly 20x darker.
- Good dark window
- Recife retains astronomical darkness throughout the year, so seasonality is less extreme than at higher latitudes. The main limitation is light pollution, not the length of the dark window.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you see the Milky Way from Recife?
No. Recife is a Bortle Class 9 sky with SQM 17.81, 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 Recife?
Recife is Bortle Class 9 (SQM 17.81), a severe urban sky for astronomy.
Is Recife good for stargazing?
Not for serious deep-sky observing. Recife is a severe urban sky where the Moon, planets, and a handful of bright targets are the realistic options from the city itself.
Is Recife good for astrophotography?
Broadband deep-sky imaging is heavily compromised from Recife and a Bortle 4 or darker site is strongly recommended. Even narrowband imaging is difficult from Recife without careful processing.
What can you observe from Recife?
Primary targets from Recife 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 Recife?
The closest meaningfully darker mapped site is Paudalho, Pernambuco, about 37 km west north west of Recife, reaching Bortle 6.
When is the sky darkest in Recife?
The sky over Recife is darkest around June, July.
Is light pollution in Recife getting better or worse?
Long-term light pollution over Recife has been broadly stable across the available measurements.
north - marginal
The north sky shows a clear glow near the ground. Above about 20 degrees the sky returns to workable.
north-north-east - marginal
Soft skyglow visible on the north-north-east horizon. Mid-brightness stars survive at low elevation; the faintest do not.
north-east - fair
A trace of skyglow near the north-east horizon. Stars are clear throughout this direction except very close to the ground.
east-north-east - good
No noticeable light pollution to the east-north-east. The sky in this direction is dark to the horizon.
east - good
Dark sky in the east direction with no obvious skyglow. Suitable for faint-object work at low elevation.
east-south-east - good
The east-south-east sky is dark to the horizon. Faint targets are accessible at all elevations here.
south-east - good
Dark horizon to the south-east. Faint stars and extended objects in this direction behave much as they do overhead.
south-south-east - good
The south-south-east horizon is dark. Faint stars are visible close to the ground.
south - fair
Light glow detectable on the south horizon. The effect fades quickly with elevation and does not affect overhead work.
south-south-west - poor
Heavy light pollution to the south-south-west. The lower 30 degrees of sky in this direction are unusable for faint targets.
south-west - marginal
Noticeable glow on the south-west horizon. Stars below about 20 degrees in this direction are dimmed.
west-south-west - marginal
The west-south-west lower sky is measurably brighter than the darker quarters. Limit faint work to above about 20 degrees here.
west - marginal
The west sky shows a clear glow near the ground. Above about 20 degrees the sky returns to workable.
west-north-west - marginal
Soft skyglow visible on the west-north-west horizon. Mid-brightness stars survive at low elevation; the faintest do not.
north-west - fair
The north-west sky is broadly dark with a small amount of glow at the horizon. Most objects in this direction are accessible.
north-north-west - marginal
A diffuse glow sits on the north-north-west horizon. Faint objects below 20 degrees in this direction are compromised.
zenith - poor
The zenith sky background is high. Most faint stars are absent and the Milky Way cannot be seen.
-
Paudalho, Pernambuco
- Direction
- WNW
- Distance (km)
- 37.1
- SQM
- 19.76
- Bortle
- 6
-
Itambé, Pernambuco
- Direction
- NNW
- Distance (km)
- 68.1
- SQM
- 20.01
- Bortle
- 6
-
Jucá, Paraíba
- Direction
- WNW
- Distance (km)
- 95
- SQM
- 20.55
- Bortle
- 5
-
Cumaru, Pernambuco
- Direction
- W
- Distance (km)
- 103.5
- SQM
- 20.29
- Bortle
- 6
-
Maraial, Pernambuco
- Direction
- SW
- Distance (km)
- 137.2
- SQM
- 20.40
- Bortle
- 5
-
Soledade, Paraíba
- Direction
- WNW
- Distance (km)
- 207.7
- SQM
- 21.08
- Bortle
- 4