{
  "updated_at": "2026-08-31T16:25:28.91+00:00",
  "stale": true,
  "night_of": "2026-08-31",
  "moon": {
    "phase": 0.622,
    "illumination": 0.86,
    "phase_name": "Waning gibbous"
  },
  "darkness": {
    "ends": "2026-09-01T06:23:00.000Z",
    "starts": "2026-08-31T21:54:00.000Z"
  },
  "verdict": {
    "level": "fair",
    "label": "Mixed",
    "answer": "The best place to stargaze in Madeira tonight is Ponta do Pargo lighthouse cliffs, forecast at about 25% cloud between 22:00 and 02:00.",
    "detail": "The moon is 86% lit, bright enough to drown out the Milky Way — stick to planets, the moon itself and bright clusters. Ponta do Pargo lighthouse cliffs is a Bortle 3 site at 312 m.",
    "best_spot": "ponta-do-pargo"
  },
  "spots": [
    {
      "slug": "paul-da-serra",
      "name": "Paul da Serra plateau",
      "area": "Central-west Madeira",
      "lat": 32.7514,
      "lng": -17.0742,
      "altitude_m": 1450,
      "bortle": 2,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 40,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.8,
      "access": "ER110 road, wide gravel pull-offs; 45 min from Funchal",
      "note": "The darkest easily-drivable sky on the island. Open moorland with a clean horizon in every direction and almost no light domes except a faint glow south-east over Funchal.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "paul-da-serra",
        "humidity_pct": 94,
        "high_cloud_pct": 0,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-08-31T23:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 32,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 44
      },
      "score_tonight": 23
    },
    {
      "slug": "pico-do-areeiro",
      "name": "Pico do Areeiro",
      "area": "Central massif",
      "lat": 32.7356,
      "lng": -16.9289,
      "altitude_m": 1818,
      "bortle": 3,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 95,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.5,
      "access": "Paved road to the summit car park; 40 min from Funchal",
      "note": "Highest road-accessible point in Madeira and usually above the cloud inversion. Funchal's light dome sits low to the south, so face north for the darkest sky.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "pico-do-areeiro",
        "humidity_pct": 100,
        "high_cloud_pct": 1,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-08-31T22:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 28,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 46
      },
      "score_tonight": 15
    },
    {
      "slug": "fanal",
      "name": "Fanal laurel forest",
      "area": "North-west, Porto Moniz council",
      "lat": 32.8106,
      "lng": -17.1436,
      "altitude_m": 1150,
      "bortle": 2,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 55,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.7,
      "access": "ER209 off the Paul da Serra road; unlit forestry car park",
      "note": "Very dark, but the most fog-prone site on this list — the same moisture that makes the ancient til trees photogenic ruins the seeing on maybe half of all nights.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "fanal",
        "humidity_pct": 92,
        "high_cloud_pct": 0,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-09-01T02:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 11,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 36
      },
      "score_tonight": 31
    },
    {
      "slug": "achada-do-teixeira",
      "name": "Achada do Teixeira",
      "area": "Above Santana, north coast",
      "lat": 32.7581,
      "lng": -16.9186,
      "altitude_m": 1592,
      "bortle": 2,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 60,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.7,
      "access": "Sealed road from Santana to the Pico Ruivo trailhead car park",
      "note": "North-facing, so the Funchal light dome is fully blocked by the ridge. Best site on the island for northern-sky and aurora-adjacent airglow photography.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "achada-do-teixeira",
        "humidity_pct": 100,
        "high_cloud_pct": 1,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-08-31T22:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 28,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 46
      },
      "score_tonight": 21
    },
    {
      "slug": "ponta-do-pargo",
      "name": "Ponta do Pargo lighthouse cliffs",
      "area": "Western tip",
      "lat": 32.8114,
      "lng": -17.2617,
      "altitude_m": 312,
      "bortle": 3,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 120,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.3,
      "access": "Drive to the lighthouse, park and walk 200 m clear of the beam",
      "note": "Sea-level horizon over 270°, which makes it the best spot for low southern objects and for catching the Milky Way core setting into the Atlantic.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "ponta-do-pargo",
        "humidity_pct": 80,
        "high_cloud_pct": 2,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-09-01T02:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 9,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 25
      },
      "score_tonight": 36
    },
    {
      "slug": "pico-do-facho-porto-santo",
      "name": "Pico do Facho, Porto Santo",
      "area": "Porto Santo island",
      "lat": 33.0836,
      "lng": -16.3025,
      "altitude_m": 517,
      "bortle": 3,
      "viirs_artificial_brightness_ucd_m2": 110,
      "limiting_magnitude": 6.4,
      "access": "Narrow paved road to the summit viewpoint",
      "note": "Porto Santo is drier and far less cloudy than Madeira, so clear-night odds are the best in the archipelago even though the sky is slightly brighter.",
      "conditions": {
        "slug": "pico-do-facho-porto-santo",
        "humidity_pct": 77,
        "high_cloud_pct": 9,
        "best_hour_local": "2026-09-01T02:00",
        "best_hour_cloud_pct": 27,
        "cloud_cover_night_pct": 53
      },
      "score_tonight": 8
    }
  ],
  "source": {
    "url": "https://open-meteo.com/en/docs",
    "name": "Open-Meteo cloud & sun forecast",
    "license": "CC-BY 4.0"
  },
  "night_lights": {
    "url": "https://eogdata.mines.edu/products/vnl/",
    "name": "VIIRS DNB night lights / World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness"
  }
}