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Free Milky Way Field Guide PDF

Preview wide-field MW bands — galactic core, Rho Ophiuchi, northern/winter arch, LMC, and SMC — then download a printable PDF field guide.

Bright sky at this site (Bortle 8)

The Milky Way won't look like this to the eye here. Previews and PDF skies use a Bortle 2 simulation so structure isn't washed out. Conditions text still lists your real Bortle (8 · City).

Try a darker site:

Tonight conditions

  • Moon: Waxing Gibbous 91% · rise 4:03 PM / set 3:58 AM
  • Clouds: ~54% · Best clouds 3:00 PM-10:00 PM (~12%)
  • Dark window: 4:06 AM-4:32 AM (26m)

Setup

Site, time, and gear for aim + exposure. Prefills when opened from the Season Planner.

Target previews

Tap a card to include it in the PDF. Aimed at each Milky Way feature for your setup.

FOV 85×57° · Sony A7 III

Bulge & summer core

Wide-field galactic centre and nearby dusty complex.

Galactic Core

GC

Not above horizon during tonight's dark window from this site.

Brightest MW structure for wide-field summer imaging from Guyana.

Rho Ophiuchi / Antares

Rho Oph

Not above horizon during tonight's dark window from this site.

Colourful dusty complex near the galactic bulge — wider than the core alone.

Northern & winter arch

Cygnus, anticenter, and winter MW when the core is down.

Northern MW (Cygnus / Summer Triangle)

N MW

Peaks near 04:13 at 21 deg (0.8 h above horizon).

Great Rift / Cygnus region of the northern Milky Way arch.

Galactic Anticenter (Auriga / Gemini)

Anti-GC

Peaks near 04:38 at 19 deg (0.8 h above horizon).

Opposite the core — fainter winter/spring MW arch through Auriga and Gemini.

Winter Milky Way (Orion spur)

Winter

Peaks near 04:38 at 22 deg (0.8 h above horizon).

Orion–Monoceros stretch of the winter MW — strong when the summer core is down.

Southern & Magellanic

Magellanic Clouds (often low from Guyana).

Large Magellanic Cloud

LMC

Peaks near 04:38 at 2 deg (0.8 h above horizon).

Southern dwarf galaxy — low from Guyana; best due south when high. Card shows a NOIRLab reference photo (LMC sits below the horizon often from Guyana).

Small Magellanic Cloud

SMC

Peaks near 04:38 at 10 deg (0.8 h above horizon).

Companion dwarf galaxy to the LMC — smaller and farther south. Card uses a NOIRLab SMASH reference plate.

Download PDF

Cover + one page per selected target with aim, exposure, and drift notes.

Rule of thumb exposures — verify with a short test shot in the field.

Planning core seasonality? Milky Way Season Planner