Which constellations can you see from Cairns tonight?
Stars and constellations over Cairns tonight: October–December 2026
| Month | High overhead | Rising in the east | Setting in the west |
|---|---|---|---|
| mid-October · 9:00 pm | Aquarius, Piscis Austrinus, Grus and Pegasus | Andromeda, Eridanus and Aries | Scorpius, Ophiuchus and Lyra |
| mid-November · 9:00 pm | Cetus, Pisces, Aquarius, Phoenix, Piscis Austrinus and Grus | Taurus, Perseus and Orion | Cygnus, Aquila and Sagittarius |
| mid-December · 9:00 pm | Cetus, Eridanus, Phoenix, Aries and Pisces | Canis Major, Puppis, Auriga and Gemini | Pegasus |
From Cairns on mid-October evenings (around 9:00 pm), look straight up for Aquarius, Piscis Austrinus, Grus and Pegasus. Rising in the east: Andromeda, Eridanus and Aries. Sinking in the west: Scorpius, Ophiuchus and Lyra. From Cairns's low latitude, no major constellation stays up all night. Bright stars to start from: Achernar, Altair and Fomalhaut. By mid-December, Canis Major, Puppis, Auriga and Gemini join the evening sky.
Use the live chart below for tonight's exact view.
- Make tonight's sky a gift. Preview the free star map of a night in Cairns
- Or name a star in Aquarius, high over Cairns on October evenings: a symbolic dedication with a PDF certificate. Choose a star in Aquarius
Use the free local tool
This page provides a result prefilled with the place and coordinates. The calculations and phone gyroscope work without an order; the HD poster remains optional. See tonight's constellations over Cairns
Overhead, rising and never-setting constellations for October–December 2026, with a live chart for tonight
The table lists the constellations over Cairns for each month of October–December 2026; the live chart then shows tonight's sky for the city or your exact location, with the Moon and planets. Both are free.
Why choose Starry Memory
- Computed for the city's sky — The lists are calculated for Cairns's latitude and local evening time, month by month, not copied from a generic seasonal chart.
- Overhead, rising and setting — Knowing where a constellation stands helps you find it: overhead ones are the easiest, rising ones climb through the evening, setting ones are best early.
- Never-setting groups — The circumpolar constellations of Cairns are listed: they are there on any clear night of the year.
- Live chart for tonight — The chart below recomputes the constellations, the Moon and the planets for tonight and for your exact location.
From Cairns, latitude decides how high each familiar pattern can climb above an ideal horizon.
Latitude-screened constellations for Cairns
Each entry below gives an approximate maximum altitude at meridian transit and a practical season; an asterisk means circumpolar in this simplified centroid model: Octans: 24.9°, all year *; Canis Major: 86.9°, summer; Sagittarius: 81.9°, winter; Scorpius: 80.9°, winter; Virgo: 77.1°, autumn; Aquila: 73.1°, winter; Orion: 68.1°, summer; Centaurus: 59.9°, autumn; Phoenix: 58.9°, spring; Leo: 58.1°, autumn; Taurus: 55.1°, summer; Gemini: 51.1°, summer; Crux: 46.9°, autumn; Carina: 46.9°, summer. This is a planning guide, not a promise that every star will be visible from a bright street. Date, hour, local obstructions and light pollution still matter. The live sky tool performs the date-specific projection that a static latitude table cannot.
Cairns's verifiable local record
92366 · longitude 145.76613 · south hemisphere · timezone Australia/Brisbane · celestial-pole altitude 16.9°. Seasonal signature: longest night in June, 13 h 00 · shortest night in December, 10 h 59 · range 2.01 hours. Meridian star markers: Octans 24.9° * · Canis Major 86.9° · Sagittarius 81.9° · Scorpius 80.9° · Virgo 77.1° · Aquila 73.1°. Nearby catalogue cities: Townsville 283 km · Sunshine Coast 1319 km · Toowoomba 1343 km. First regional eclipse shortlist: 2027-07-18 Penumbral lunar eclipse 16:04 UTC · 2027-08-17 Penumbral lunar eclipse 07:14 UTC · 2028-07-06 Partial lunar eclipse 18:20 UTC. Together these values form the local evidence record for the “constellations” page; they change with place and remain separate from real weather.
Cairns compared with nearby catalogue cities
1. Cairns → Townsville: 282.7 km · Δlat -2.343° · Δlon +1.040° · Δpole +2.4° · timezone Australia/Brisbane = Australia/Brisbane · longest night June 13 h 09 | 2. Cairns → Sunshine Coast: 1318.9 km · Δlat -9.733° · Δlon +7.313° · Δpole +9.8° · timezone Australia/Brisbane = Australia/Brisbane · longest night June 13 h 40 | 3. Cairns → Toowoomba: 1342.7 km · Δlat -10.637° · Δlon +6.188° · Δpole +10.7° · timezone Australia/Brisbane = Australia/Brisbane · longest night June 13 h 44. Monthly night comparison with the nearest catalogue reference — January: Cairns 11 h 05 / Townsville 10 h 58 / Δ +0.13 h · February: Cairns 11 h 27 / Townsville 11 h 22 / Δ +0.08 h · March: Cairns 11 h 53 / Townsville 11 h 52 / Δ +0.02 h · April: Cairns 12 h 23 / Townsville 12 h 26 / Δ -0.05 h · May: Cairns 12 h 47 / Townsville 12 h 55 / Δ -0.12 h · June: Cairns 13 h 00 / Townsville 13 h 09 / Δ -0.15 h · July: Cairns 12 h 55 / Townsville 13 h 04 / Δ -0.14 h · August: Cairns 12 h 34 / Townsville 12 h 40 / Δ -0.09 h · September: Cairns 12 h 05 / Townsville 12 h 06 / Δ -0.01 h · October: Cairns 11 h 37 / Townsville 11 h 33 / Δ +0.06 h · November: Cairns 11 h 11 / Townsville 11 h 04 / Δ +0.12 h · December: Cairns 10 h 59 / Townsville 10 h 50 / Δ +0.15 h. For constellation screening, latitude difference becomes a meridian-altitude difference; a small change is reported as small rather than exaggerated for local copy.
The astronomical fingerprint of Cairns
Cairns is represented by 16.9237° S, 145.7661° E, in Queensland, using the IANA zone Australia/Brisbane. This is a tropical viewpoint: the relevant celestial pole stands about 16.9° above its horizon. No source elevation is used, so a flat horizon remains the transparent default.
Twelve monthly light estimates for Cairns
The following pairs are approximate daylight / night duration around the 15th of each month: January: 12 h 55 / 11 h 05; February: 12 h 33 / 11 h 27; March: 12 h 07 / 11 h 53; April: 11 h 37 / 12 h 23; May: 11 h 13 / 12 h 47; June: 11 h 00 / 13 h 00; July: 11 h 05 / 12 h 55; August: 11 h 26 / 12 h 34; September: 11 h 55 / 12 h 05; October: 12 h 23 / 11 h 37; November: 12 h 49 / 11 h 11; December: 13 h 01 / 10 h 59. The longest estimated night in this model is June at 13 h 00; the shortest is December at 10 h 59. “Night” here is the complement of daylight on a flat horizon. Civil, nautical and astronomical twilight are not interchangeable, and weather is not predicted by this table.
What the calculation does — and does not claim
Coordinates, date and local time feed the same astronomical workflow used by the poster. The HYG catalogue provides star entries, while Astronomy Engine calculates moving bodies. The page does not claim that city-centre coordinates equal a hospital, venue or home: selecting an autocomplete suggestion replaces the shortcut with that location. It also separates astronomical geometry from weather and light pollution, so a correct map never becomes a claim that the ground-level sky was cloudless.
Free gyroscope first, optional poster second
On a compatible phone, the gyroscope turns the calculated sky into a movable window: tilt and rotate to explore, with star names shown beside key points. That experience is free. If a date deserves a keepsake, the same place can continue into the editor. The protected preview remains watermarked before payment; the €3.99 purchase unlocks the 4960 × 7016 px, 300 DPI file. Physical formats appear only when availability, delivery supplement and timing can be checked for the destination. Checkout is in euros; the card issuer shows the current conversion to Australian dollars (AUD).
Frequently asked questions
What constellations can I see tonight from Cairns?
In mid-October around 9:00 pm: Aquarius, Piscis Austrinus, Grus and Pegasus overhead, Andromeda, Eridanus and Aries rising in the east. In mid-November: Cetus, Pisces, Aquarius, Phoenix, Piscis Austrinus and Grus overhead, Taurus, Perseus and Orion rising.
Which constellations never set from Cairns?
None of the major constellations: close to the equator, every group rises and sets.
Can I see the Big Dipper from Cairns?
Only low in the north: the Big Dipper reaches at most 17° from Cairns, on autumn evenings.
When is the best time to look?
After full darkness (7:30 pm in mid-October, 7:46 pm in mid-November, 8:07 pm in mid-December) and away from the full Moon (October 26, November 25, December 24). The new Moons of October 11, November 9, December 9 give the darkest skies.
How do I find constellations from a city?
Start from the brightest stars, let your eyes adapt for 15 to 20 minutes, and look for the main outline rather than every star. Light pollution hides faint stars, so patterns such as Cassiopeia's W or Orion's belt are the easiest first targets.
Why does the sky change during the year?
The stars rise about four minutes earlier each night, so the evening sky shifts by about two hours a month as the Earth orbits the Sun. From Cairns, Aquarius and Piscis Austrinus are overhead in mid-October; by mid-December, Cetus and Eridanus have taken over and Canis Major is rising in the east. Latitude matters too: it decides which groups never rise and which never set.
See tonight's constellations over Cairns
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See also
- A personalised star map gift for Cairns
- What's in the night sky tonight over Cairns?
- Night length and darkness calendar for Cairns
- Eclipse calendar for Cairns
- Which constellations can you see from Townsville tonight?
- Which constellations can you see from Sunshine Coast tonight?
- Which constellations can you see from Toowoomba tonight?
- Personalised star map gifts across Australia
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