Stargazing & Night Skies
Far from the glow of any city, the Badlands hold some of the darkest, clearest night skies in the country. The Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library is built to keep them that way — a dark-sky campus where every outdoor light points down at the ground, so the stars overhead stay bright. When the sun drops behind the buttes, the Milky Way rises and the whole sky opens up.
The grounds are open year-round, and the nearly mile-long boardwalk that loops the butte is fully accessible — a smooth, level path to walk out under the stars. Along the way, an outdoor classroom and a bridge strung with hammock-style netting invite visitors to lie back, look up, and let their eyes adjust to the dark. It is one of the best seats in North Dakota for a night sky.
On a clear, moonless night you can trace the Milky Way from horizon to horizon, pick out planets and star clusters, and watch for meteors — the Perseids peak in mid-August and the Geminids in mid-December. On the most active nights, the northern lights join in. A pair of binoculars is all most people need to begin.
Apps and tools to guide your night
A few free and low-cost apps turn any phone into a pocket planetarium. Hold one up to the sky and it names the stars, planets, and constellations overhead.
- Stellarium — a free, detailed sky map for phone and desktop.
- Sky Guide and SkySafari — point your phone at the sky to identify stars, planets, and passing satellites.
- Star Walk 2 and SkyView — beginner-friendly, augmented-reality star finders.
- PhotoPills — plans Milky Way and night-photography shots by date and location.
- NASA Night Sky Network — events, moon phases, and what is up tonight.
One tip: switch your phone to night or red-light mode so the screen does not spoil your night vision.
North Dakota sits far enough north that the aurora borealis makes regular appearances, most often from fall through early spring. The lights are likeliest on clear nights between about 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. — look to the northern horizon, away from any glow. Activity is measured on the Kp scale, and a Kp of roughly 5 or higher usually means the aurora is visible this far south.
Forecast tools: NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center posts the official 30-minute and 3-day aurora forecasts, and apps such as My Aurora Forecast, SpaceWeatherLive, and Hello Aurora send alerts the moment activity spikes.
Each year, Theodore Roosevelt National Park and historic Medora host the Dakota Nights Astronomy Festival — a weekend of stargazing through high-powered telescopes, talks by astronomers and park rangers, safe solar viewing, rocket building, and night-sky programs for all ages. The park’s distance from city lights makes it one of the best places in the region to see the Milky Way, planets, and meteor showers. Recent festivals have been held in late August; check the National Park Service for this year’s dates.
Mark the calendar for August 23, 2044. On that evening, the path of a total solar eclipse will sweep across Montana and western North Dakota — directly over the Badlands and Theodore Roosevelt National Park. Near Medora, the moon will cover the sun for roughly a minute and a half, turning day briefly to twilight. It will be the first total solar eclipse to cross this part of the country in generations, and Medora will sit close to the center of the path.
A few things make a night out here more comfortable:
- Dress warmer than you think — nights on the prairie turn cool, even in summer.
- Bring a red-light flashlight (or switch your phone to red mode) to protect your night vision.
- Give your eyes 20–30 minutes to fully adjust to the dark.
- Check the moon phase and the weather — a clear, moonless night is best.
- The grounds and boardwalk are open year-round and free to explore.