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- Saturday is the beginning of winter, which is the shortest day of the year.
- Utah offers 31 dark sky locations for stargazing during the longest night of the year.
- Despite some cloud cover, promising sky-viewing conditions are expected.
SALT LAKE CITY — Winter is officially here, as the winter solstice took place early Saturday, marking the shortest day of the year for the northern hemisphere.
However, this also means that days will begin to get longer for the next few months — and the longest night of the year offers even more time for people to explore the beautiful night sky at Utah's many "Dark Sky Places."
Utah is home to 31 dark sky parks, communities, urban places, sanctuaries and lodging areas approved by the International Dark Sky Association, the organization that hands out recognition to areas that preserve views of the dark sky by curbing light pollution.
Weather conditions are also lining up to be ideal for stargazing. A high-pressure system over southern Utah on Friday is keeping relatively warm and dry to start winter. KSL meteorologist Kristen Van Dyke said there will be some clouds, but parts of southeast Utah appear to have the highest probability for clear skies Saturday night.
The downside of the forecast, of course, is that a layer of haze is building up along the Wasatch Front and other areas impacted by inversions. It also means that storms in the West will bounce over the state until the high-pressure system breaks down early next week.
For those looking to enjoy Utah's heavenly feature, here are five options worth exploring:
Dinosaur National Monument
- Location: Jensen/Dinosaur Colorado
- Sunset time: 4:55 p.m.
- Cloud cover forecast: 10%-45% throughout most of the night. Stronger cloud cover is forecast at sunset before thinning a bit and returning by late Sunday morning.
- Additional notes: Nearby Steinaker State Park is also a designated dark sky park.
Helper
- Location: Carbon County
- Sunset time: 5:03 p.m.
- Cloud cover forecast: 15%-40% through the night, with the best conditions later into the night. Thicker cloud cover is expected to roll in on Sunday.
- Additional notes: It's one of a few dark sky cities and towns across the state and close to scenic natural spaces in central Utah.
Hovenweep National Monument
- Location: Montezuma Creek, San Juan County
- Sunset time: 5:04 p.m.
- Cloud cover forecast: 5%-20% throughout the night.
- Additional notes: It's around plenty of other dark sky areas in the Four Corners region.
Jordanelle State Park
- Location: Heber City
- Sunset time: 5:02 p.m.
- Cloud cover forecast: 20%-40% throughout most of the night before strong cloud cover arrives on Sunday.
- Additional notes: One of a few dark sky options people have along the Wasatch Backcountry.
Zion National Park
- Location: Springdale, Washington County
- Sunset time: 5:19 p.m.
- Cloud cover forecast: 10%-25% until about 4 a.m. Sunday. Stronger cloud cover is possible later Sunday.
- Additional notes: You don't have to be in the park to enjoy the dark sky preservation. Springdale is a designated dark sky community, as well.
