You've surely seen photos of the Milky Way, usually taken by photographers who travel far away to get them. They're cosmically beautiful, colorful, and timeless. Now, for a short time, it's possible for you to get a direct glimpse of the Milky Way.
The Milky Way — no, not the candy bar — is Earth's home galaxy. NASA describes it as “a spiral galaxy with a disk of stars extending more than 100,000 light-years,” and the space agency notes that Earth is located along one of the galaxy's spiral arms, about halfway to the center. It takes our solar system about 240 million years to complete one orbit of the Milky Way. Even though we're part of the Milky Way, we can sometimes see its central disk moving across the sky, looking like “a faint, milky band of light,” NASA notes.
Earth is at the epicenter of the action, as the saying goes, meaning the Milky Way is visible from February through October, or most of the year. However, most people in the US only get a chance to see it for about a dozen days over four months, depending on one's location.
The first two weeks of July are the best time to catch a glimpse of our cosmic neighborhood. Once July 13 has come and gone, you'll have to wait until early August to try again.
Seeing the Milky Way isn't as rare as seeing a solar eclipse or a parade of planets, but it is harder in most cases. While eclipses and planetary parades are pretty much visible from the backyard of anyone who is in the path of the event, the Milky Way is pretty difficult to see from many populated parts of the US. In short, you may want to plan a road trip somewhere far away to get a good look at it.
When can I see the Milky Way?
The exact dates vary from region to region, but the Milky Way should be visible across the US on roughly the same days. To be able to see the Milky Way, the sky must be dark enough. The best time to see it is five days before and five days after the new moon. The July new moon occurs on the evening of July 5 and the morning of July 6, so this sets the date range for viewing the Milky Way. Once the moon reaches about 50% brightness, which occurs on July 13, it becomes very difficult to see the Milky Way until the next new moon.
It will be visible for several days before and after the new moon, while the moon is at the end of its waning phase and the beginning of its waxing phase. Thus, while July 6 is undoubtedly the best day, you can still see the galaxy for about a week after that.
The galaxy also won't be visible all night. There's only a three to six hour window when you'll be able to see it. Again, this will vary depending on your location. Here's when the galaxy can be best viewed, depending on the area. All times are local to that area, and these times are specifically for the evening of July 5 through July 6.
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Pacific Northwest: 11:35 pm to 2:55 am (three hours 20 minutes)
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Western coast: 10:17 pm to 4:06 am (five hours 49 minutes)
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Southwest: 10:45 pm to 4:25 am (five hours 42 minutes)
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middle West: 10:32 pm to 3:37 am (five hours and five minutes)
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South: 10:13 pm to 5:02 am (six hours 49 minutes)
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East coast: 10:54 pm to 3:35 am (four hours 41 minutes)
The further south and east you go, the more time you will have to view and photograph the galaxy. People in those areas will be able to see more of the galaxy than people in areas to the north and west. But it is said that almost everyone in the US will be able to see the galaxy for at least three hours.
People on the West Coast and in the southwest, midwest and southern US will be able to view the Milky Way without any trouble for the same length of time at roughly the same time every night until July 13. The start and end times and the total duration may vary by about half an hour.
Where can I see the Milky Way?
Virtually the entire Northern Hemisphere will be able to see the Milky Way, provided they are in the right environment. The hardest part is getting into that environment. Since this is an astronomical event, much of the logic and reasoning that applies to other astrological events applies here as well. The closer you are to cities and major light sources, the more difficult it will be to see anything.
To see the Milky Way, you need to get as far away from light pollution as you can. Light pollution describes the phenomenon in which man-made light artificially increases the brightness of the night sky. Artificial light suppresses most of the celestial objects you would normally be able to see with the naked eye. This is why the sky looks so much stronger in the middle of nowhere than inside a major metropolitan area.
There's a great map at LightPollutionMap.info that shows light pollution across the US. You'll notice that areas like Nevada, Utah, and other states in that region have very little light pollution. That's why a lot of good photos of the Milky Way are taken in the desert. There's no light there. Dark Site Finder also has some useful tools for locating a sufficiently dark location in your general area.
Going to higher elevations also helps, although a few hundred feet of elevation change won't make much of a difference. Going from sea level to a place like Arches National Park, Utah — which is more than 5,000 feet high — makes a big difference. According to NASA, going to higher elevations means you'll be above ground obstructions like dense air and fog, allowing you to see the sky more clearly.
So, in short, you'll want to be in the darkest and highest spot in your area to have the best chance of seeing the galaxy.
What do I need to see the Milky Way?
The galaxy is easily visible even without binoculars or high-powered telescopes. But if you have these, magnification devices will help you get a closer look at various points of interest. It is a large galaxy, and if you want to get a closer look, there is a lot to see.
Your most important tools are darkness and altitude. Without these, you won't be able to see the Milky Way at all. Pack a good camera and a tripod. Photos taken with long exposures capture more light than the human eye can see, and photos can be further improved by editing them later.
Photographers looking to take a great photo of the Milky Way just need to follow a few general rules. You need a fast lens. The lower the f-stop the better. After that, you need a long exposure time, a sturdy tripod that won't shake, and enough patience to get the focus right, as the stars don't offer a lot of contrast for cameras to work the auto focus. After that, it's just a matter of dialing in your camera's settings.
Mark your calendar for galaxy viewing options
There are two good resources for finding the best dates to view the Milky Way. The first is any lunar calendar (Time & Date has one that's relatively easy to read) that shows when the new moon will appear between February and November. The less light the moon gives off, the easier it is to see the sky around it.
Based on that data, the last few days of July and the first week of August will be the next good opportunity to see the Milky Way. After that, it will be the last few days of August and the first week of September.
Another useful tool is the Milky Way Calendar. The website Capture the Atlas creates these every year and emails them to interested users for free. The website has an email signup form. Once you sign up, it emails you a list of calendars based on latitude. From there, use Google Maps to find your latitude and then use the Milky Way Calendar to find your nearest location.