There is nothing more magical than lying on a beach on the night of San Lorenzo and observing the sky and its shooting stars. This phenomenon, visible to the human eye since the beginning of time, has over the years become a common activity for travelers and explorers, always looking for remote and uncontaminated places to better observe the night sky and its wonders.
In this research, lense analyzes i best places in the world to observe the stars, taking into account the level of light pollution of each place, and the popularity on the internet through the analysis of search volume on Google. Additionally, Lenstore offers a detailed guide to lunar eclipses visible in 2022, complete with locations and dates.
Top 20 places in the world for stargazing
| Standings | Location | Country | Light pollution
(2021) – Brightness level |
Total search volume | Lunar Eclipses in 2022 |
| 1 | Mauna Kea, Hawaii | United States | -0,03 | 40 | 2 |
| 2 | Mont-Megantic | Canada | -0,14 | 30 | 2 |
| 3 | Sedona, Arizona | United States | 0,05 | 30 | 2 |
| 4 | Cherry Springs State Park, Pennsylvania | United States | -0,02 | 20 | 2 |
| 5 | Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah | United States | 0,32 | 20 | 2 |
| 6 | Uluru | Australia | -0,01 | 50 | 1 |
| 7 | Wadi Rum | Jordan | 0,02 | 40 | 1 |
| 8 | Atacama Desert | Chile | -0,04 | 30 | 1 |
| 9 | Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park | Japan | 0,01 | 30 | 1 |
| 10 | Namib Rand Nature Reserve | Namibia | 0,01 | 30 | 1 |
| 11 | Pic du Midi | France | 0,12 | 30 | 1 |
| 12 | Aoraki Mackenzie International Dark Sky Reserve | New Zealand | -0,06 | 20 | 1 |
| 13 | La Fortuna | Costa Rica | -0,01 | 20 | 1 |
| 14 | Tenerife | Canary Islands, Spain | -0,01 | 20 | 1 |
| 15 | La Palma | Canary Islands, Spain | -0,01 | 20 | 1 |
| 16 | Capulin Volcano National Monument | United States | 0,02 | 20 | 1 |
| 17 | Kruger National Park | South Africa | 0,03 | 20 | 1 |
| 18 | Hautes Pyrenees | France | 0,11 | 20 | 1 |
| 19 | Los Angeles, Calif. | United States | 0,82 | 20 | 1 |
| 20 | Hella | Iceland | 4,06 | 30 | 1 |
According to the study, Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano on the island of Hawaii, is the best place to stargaze, thanks in part to a total search volume of 40 times per month, the second highest of the places analyzed, after Uluru in Australia. The Australian monolith is first among the twenty places in the ranking for popularity, with a total average of 50 monthly searches on Google. According to research, light pollution on Mauna Kea is very low, showing an artificial brightness level of -0,03.
Mont-Megantic, isolated rock located in Quebec, a region of Canada, ranks second in the ranking of the best places to observe stars, recording the lowest level of artificial brightness ever, equal to -0,14.
He ranks third sedona, a country located in the desert ofArizona, in the United States. From the US town, which records a brightness level of 0,05, it will be possible to see two lunar eclipses in 2022. The level of popularity of this third place among Italians corresponds on average to 30 monthly searches on Google.
Top location for stargazing in Europe
Without going too far, Europe also hosts places to observe starry panoramas. According to the results of the study, the best places for stargazing in Europe are:
| Standings | Location | Country | Light pollution
(2021) – Brightness level |
Total search volume | Lunar Eclipses in 2022 |
| 1 | Pic du Midi | France | 0,12 | 30 | 1 |
| 2 | Tenerife | Canary Islands, Spain | -0,01 | 20 | 1 |
| 3 | La Palma | Canary Islands, Spain | -0,01 | 20 | 1 |
| 4 | Hautes Pyrenees | France | 0,11 | 20 | 1 |
| 5 | Hella | Iceland | 4,06 | 30 | 1 |
| 6 | Westhavelland Nature Park | Germany | 0,12 | 10 | 1 |
| 7 | The Wild Atlantic Way | Ireland | 0,18 | 10 | 1 |
| 8 | Kerry International Dark Sky Reserve | Ireland | 0,85 | 10 | 1 |
| 9 | Rhön Biosphere Reserve | Germany | 1,14 | 10 | 1 |
| 10 | Hortobágy National Park | Hungary | -0,07 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | Zselic Protected Area | Hungary | -0,01 | 0 | 1 |
Il Pic du Midi, peak in the French Pyrenees ranks first among mete Europeans to look at the stars, thanks to a relatively high level of popularity among Italians equal to 30 average monthly searches on Google.
In second place are the islands Canaries of Tenerife and La Palma, both destinations much loved by Italians, which offer one of the lowest levels of light pollution in Europe (equal to -0,01 in both islands).
Hella, country ofSouthwestern Iceland, is among the best places for stargazing in Europe. Although the town has the highest light pollution of all the places analyzed (equal to 4,06), its high popularity in monthly Google searches makes this place one of the best places from which to observe the stars. Furthermore, Hella is the only location in Europe where it will be possible to observe the lunar eclipse on November 7-8.
2022 lunar eclipse calendar
This year there are two dates to keep in mind for fanatic stargazers: 15-16 May 2022 and 7-8 November 2022. The table below shows the top 10 ranking of the best places to observe stars, and the dates where to book if you want to watch this show in one of these places.
| Standings | Location | Country | Number of lunar eclipses in 2022 | Date |
| 1 | Mauna Kea, Hawaii | United States | 2 | May 15-16, November 7-8 |
| 2 | Mont-Megantic | Canada | 2 | May 15-16, November 7-8 |
| 3 | Sedona, Arizona | United States | 2 | May 15-16, November 7-8 |
| 4 | Cherry Springs State Park, Pennsylvania | United States | 2 | May 15-16, November 7-8 |
| 5 | Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah | United States | 2 | May 15-16, November 7-8 |
| 6 | Uluru | Australia | 1 | 7-8 November |
| 7 | Wadi Rum | Jordan | 1 | 15 16-May |
| 8 | Atacama Desert | Chile | 1 | 15 16-May |
| 9 | Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park | Japan | 1 | 7-8 November |
| 10 | Namib Rand Nature Reserve | Namibia | 1 | 15 16-May |
The breathtaking spectacle of the night sky will never cease to amaze billions of tourists around the world, but to ensure that the experience is lived in the best way, we must take care of our visual health, and in case of symptoms of eye strain contact your eye doctor to discuss any prescription for glasses or contact lenses.''
Research methodology
To conduct the research we created a list of places by merging several lists. We then found the coordinates of each location using Google searches for “latitude and longitude of [location]” and identified the level of artificial brightness in those areas. We have included information regarding lunar eclipses expected in 2022.
The monthly search volume in Italy (average) was calculated considering the dates December 2020 – November 2021, for the following keywords:
[place] stars
[place] stargazing
[place] stars
[place] look at the stars
Finally these two research volumes were combined into a single figure.
The process was then repeated for [place} where [place] was the country of each term, and applied to all relevant countries.
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