Which constellations can you see from Philadelphia tonight?

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 Philadelphia

Overhead, rising and never-setting constellations for October–December 2026, with a live chart for tonight

The table lists the constellations over Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia'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 Philadelphia 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 Philadelphia, latitude decides how high each familiar pattern can climb above an ideal horizon.

Latitude-screened constellations for Philadelphia

Each entry below gives an approximate maximum altitude at meridian transit and a practical season; an asterisk means circumpolar in this simplified centroid model: Ursa Major: 74.0°, all year *; Cassiopeia: 70.0°, all year *; Draco: 65.0°, all year *; Cepheus: 60.0°, all year *; Ursa Minor: 53.0°, all year *; Cygnus: 90.0°, summer; Auriga: 88.0°, winter; Andromeda: 88.0°, autumn; Lyra: 86.0°, summer; Perseus: 85.0°, winter; Boötes: 80.0°, spring; Gemini: 72.0°, winter; Taurus: 68.0°, winter; Leo: 65.0°, spring. 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.

Philadelphia's verifiable local record

95238 · longitude -75.16362 · north hemisphere · timezone America/New_York · celestial-pole altitude 40.0°. Seasonal signature: longest night in December, 14 h 49 · shortest night in June, 9 h 11 · range 5.64 hours. Meridian star markers: Ursa Major 74.0° * · Cassiopeia 70.0° * · Draco 65.0° * · Cepheus 60.0° * · Ursa Minor 53.0° * · Cygnus 90.0°. Nearby catalogue cities: Newark 121 km · Jersey City 126 km · New York 130 km. First regional eclipse shortlist: 2027-02-20 Penumbral lunar eclipse 23:14 UTC · 2027-08-17 Penumbral lunar eclipse 07:14 UTC · 2028-01-12 Partial lunar eclipse 04:14 UTC. Together these values form the local evidence record for the “constellations” page; they change with place and remain separate from real weather.

Philadelphia compared with nearby catalogue cities

1. Philadelphia → Newark: 121.0 km · Δlat +0.783° · Δlon +0.991° · Δpole +0.7° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 14 h 55 | 2. Philadelphia → Jersey City: 126.1 km · Δlat +0.776° · Δlon +1.086° · Δpole +0.7° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 14 h 55 | 3. Philadelphia → New York: 129.6 km · Δlat +0.762° · Δlon +1.158° · Δpole +0.7° · timezone America/New_York = America/New_York · longest night December 14 h 54. Monthly night comparison with the nearest catalogue reference — January: Philadelphia 14 h 32 / Newark 14 h 37 / Δ -0.07 h · February: Philadelphia 13 h 31 / Newark 13 h 34 / Δ -0.04 h · March: Philadelphia 12 h 19 / Newark 12 h 19 / Δ +0.00 h · April: Philadelphia 10 h 56 / Newark 10 h 55 / Δ +0.03 h · May: Philadelphia 9 h 47 / Newark 9 h 44 / Δ +0.06 h · June: Philadelphia 9 h 11 / Newark 9 h 06 / Δ +0.08 h · July: Philadelphia 9 h 26 / Newark 9 h 21 / Δ +0.08 h · August: Philadelphia 10 h 25 / Newark 10 h 22 / Δ +0.05 h · September: Philadelphia 11 h 45 / Newark 11 h 45 / Δ +0.00 h · October: Philadelphia 13 h 05 / Newark 13 h 07 / Δ -0.03 h · November: Philadelphia 14 h 15 / Newark 14 h 19 / Δ -0.07 h · December: Philadelphia 14 h 49 / Newark 14 h 55 / Δ -0.09 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 Philadelphia

Philadelphia is represented by 39.9524° N, 75.1636° W, in Pennsylvania, using the IANA zone America/New_York. This is a mid-latitude viewpoint: the relevant celestial pole stands about 40.0° above its horizon. The source elevation is 12 metres; terrain can hide a low object even when the geometric calculation says it rises.

Twelve monthly light estimates for Philadelphia

The following pairs are approximate daylight / night duration around the 15th of each month: January: 9 h 28 / 14 h 32; February: 10 h 29 / 13 h 31; March: 11 h 41 / 12 h 19; April: 13 h 04 / 10 h 56; May: 14 h 13 / 9 h 47; June: 14 h 49 / 9 h 11; July: 14 h 34 / 9 h 26; August: 13 h 35 / 10 h 25; September: 12 h 15 / 11 h 45; October: 10 h 55 / 13 h 05; November: 9 h 45 / 14 h 15; December: 9 h 11 / 14 h 49. The longest estimated night in this model is December at 14 h 49; the shortest is June at 9 h 11. “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 US dollars (USD).

Frequently asked questions

What constellations can I see tonight from Philadelphia?

In mid-October around 9:00 pm: Cygnus, Pegasus, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Lyra and Andromeda overhead, Perseus, Aries and Cetus rising in the east. In mid-November: Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Pisces, Aries, Perseus, Pegasus and Cepheus overhead, Taurus, Auriga, Orion and Gemini rising.

Which constellations never set from Philadelphia?

Ursa Minor, Cassiopeia, Cepheus and Draco stay above the horizon all night, all year, from Philadelphia's latitude (40.0° N).

Can I see the Southern Cross from Philadelphia?

No. From Philadelphia, the Southern Cross never rises above the horizon.

When is the best time to look?

After full darkness (7:50 pm in mid-October, 6:18 pm in mid-November, 6:13 pm in mid-December) and away from the full Moon (October 26, November 24, December 23). The new Moons of October 10, November 9, December 8 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 Philadelphia, Cygnus and Pegasus are overhead in mid-October; by mid-December, Perseus and Aries have taken over and Orion is rising in the east. Latitude matters too: it decides which groups never rise and which never set.

See tonight's constellations over Philadelphia

✦ Personalised star certificate

Look up: give a star you can find in the sky

A personalised certificate with a QR code: one smartphone scan shows the star in 3D, then its direction in the real sky.

1. 1Choose a real star and its name
2. 2Scan the certificate’s QR code, no app needed
3. 3Find it in the sky with your smartphone

Choose my starTry the demo

From €8.91 · PDF to download as soon as you pay

Symbolic dedication in the private Starry Memory registry. Depending on its brightness and the weather, you’ll see it with the naked eye, with binoculars, or find its direction.

Name a star: the certificate in detail

Rather the sky of a date and place? Create a star map · HD file €3.99

See also

• A personalised star map gift for Philadelphia
• What's in the night sky tonight over Philadelphia?
• Night length and darkness calendar for Philadelphia
• Eclipse calendar for Philadelphia
• Which constellations can you see from New York tonight?
• Personalised star map gifts across United States
• Local astronomy calendars for 407 cities
• What's in the night sky tonight, from where you are?

← Back to Starry Memory