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Night Sky

Stars, planets, and moon phases

Night Sky tells you what's in the sky from any location — which planets and stars are visible tonight, the current moon phase, sunrise and sunset times, upcoming eclipses, and a timeline of celestial events like meteor showers and solstices. All data is computed in real time for any coordinates.

Whether you're planning a stargazing trip, a sunrise shoot, or just curious what that bright object is in the evening sky, this tool gives you precise astronomical data without requiring any apps or specialized knowledge. Everything is location and date specific.

What you can do

  • whats_visible — see all planets and bright stars above the horizon from any location and time
  • moon_phase — get the current moon phase, illumination percentage, and upcoming full/new moon dates
  • sun_and_moon_times — get sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, twilight times, and total daylight hours
  • eclipse_forecast — find all solar and lunar eclipses in any given year
  • celestial_events — get a timeline of equinoxes, solstices, meteor shower peaks, and asteroid close approaches

Who it's for

Stargazers and amateur astronomers planning observation sessions. Photographers timing golden hour, blue hour, or night sky shoots. Anyone curious about celestial events or wanting to know what's visible from their location tonight.

How to use it

  1. Use whats_visible with your latitude, longitude, and local time offset to see what's in the sky right now
  2. Use moon_phase with a date to get illumination and phase — useful for planning dark-sky photography
  3. Use sun_and_moon_times with coordinates for precise sunrise, sunset, and twilight times for a specific day
  4. Use celestial_events to plan ahead — set a start date and days parameter to see what's coming up

Getting started

For whats_visible, you need latitude and longitude coordinates — use any city coordinates for a starting point. Always set timezone_offset to your local UTC offset so the visible objects match your actual local time.

What's Visible

Find which planets and bright stars are visible from a location at a given time. Returns all celestial objects above the horizon with altitude, compass direction, and object type.

Returns: List of visible celestial objects (planets and bright stars) above the horizon, sorted by altitude with compass directions
Moon Phase

Get the current moon phase, illumination percentage, moonrise and moonset times, and the dates of the next four major phases. Provide coordinates for location-specific moonrise/moonset times.

Returns: Current moon phase, illumination, moonrise/moonset times, and upcoming phase dates
Sun & Moon Times

Get sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, civil twilight begin and end, moon phase, and total daylight hours for any location and date. Essential for planning outdoor activities, photography, or stargazing.

Returns: Sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, twilight times, moon phase, and daylight hours
Eclipse Forecast

Get upcoming solar and lunar eclipses for a given year, including dates, types (total, annular, partial, penumbral), and timing. Solar eclipse data from the US Naval Observatory; lunar eclipses from NASA GSFC catalog (2025-2040).

Returns: List of solar and lunar eclipses for the year with dates, types, and UTC times
Celestial Events

Get a combined timeline of upcoming astronomical events including equinoxes, solstices, meteor shower peaks, and asteroid close approaches to Earth. Data from the US Naval Observatory and NASA JPL, plus well-known annual meteor shower dates.

Returns: Combined chronological timeline of equinoxes, solstices, meteor shower peaks, and asteroid close approaches
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v0.042026-04-24
  • celestial_events returns asteroid close approaches and meteor showers even when equinox/solstice data is temporarily unavailable
  • eclipse_forecast returns lunar eclipses even when solar eclipse data is temporarily unavailable
  • whats_visible gives a clearer message when upstream data is temporarily unavailable
v0.032026-04-23
  • moon_phase and sun_and_moon_times are now faster and more reliable
v0.022026-03-22
  • eclipse_forecast now includes lunar eclipses alongside solar eclipses
  • celestial_events now includes major meteor shower peaks (Quadrantids, Lyrids, Eta Aquariids, Perseids, Orionids, Leonids, Geminids, Ursids)
v0.012026-03-22
  • Initial release with 5 skills: whats_visible, moon_phase, sun_and_moon_times, eclipse_forecast, celestial_events

Connect ToolRouter to use Night Sky in Claude, ChatGPT, Copilot, and more — no code required.

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What you can do with Night Sky

Find Out What's Visible in the Night Sky Tonight

Get a personalised list of planets, stars, and deep-sky objects visible from your location tonight.

  1. Ask: "What's visible in the night sky tonight from Edinburgh using night-sky?"
  2. Claude returns a list of visible planets, stars, and deep-sky objects with positions
  3. Also ask: "What is the moon phase tonight?"
  4. Request: "Which five objects should I start with using binoculars?"

Plan for Upcoming Celestial Events and Eclipses

Find upcoming eclipses, meteor showers, planetary conjunctions, and other celestial events worth planning around.

  1. Ask: "What celestial events are coming up in the next six months using night-sky?"
  2. Claude returns a calendar of events with dates and visibility details
  3. Ask: "Which of these will be visible from the UK?"
  4. Request: "What do I need to prepare to watch the next solar eclipse safely?"

Track Moon Phases and Sunrise Sunset Times

Get accurate moon phase, moonrise, moonset, sunrise, and sunset times for any location and date.

  1. Ask: "Get moon phase and sun/moon times for Edinburgh for this week using night-sky"
  2. Claude returns phase percentage, moonrise/set, and sunrise/set for each day
  3. Ask: "Which nights this week are best for astrophotography?"
  4. Request: "When exactly will the full moon rise above the horizon on Friday?"

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Frequently Asked Questions

What can I see from my location tonight?

`whats_visible` shows planets and bright stars above the horizon for a specific latitude and longitude, sorted by altitude with compass direction.

Can it tell me sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset?

Yes. `sun_and_moon_times` returns sunrise, sunset, moonrise, moonset, civil twilight, and daylight hours. `moon_phase` adds the current phase and the next major phases.

Does it include eclipses and meteor showers?

`eclipse_forecast` lists upcoming solar and lunar eclipses by year, and `celestial_events` adds equinoxes, solstices, meteor shower peaks, and asteroid close approaches.

Do I need exact coordinates and a time zone?

For location-based results, pass latitude, longitude, and `timezone_offset`. `moon_phase` can work from a date alone if you only need phase timing.