Car park used by day to access the local nature reserve and by night offers fantastic panoramic views of the skies above. The location is an officially recognised Dark Sky Discovery Site in the Cranbourne Chase Dark Sky Reserve.
Location events organiser
Dark Night Skies Cranborne Chase National Landscape organises events at this location
Please contact Dark Night Skies Cranborne Chase National Landscape directly with any enquiries relating to visiting this location
Email: [email protected]
Website: Dark Night Skies Cranborne Chase National Landscape
Twitter: @CranborneChase
Facebook: Dark Night Skies Cranborne Chase National Landscape
Weather forecast
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11/07/26
30° 1% -
11/07/26
30° 0% -
11/07/26
29° 0% -
12/07/26
23° 1%
Weather forecast for Shaftesbury (2.9 miles away) updated 10/07/26 at 12:01. Powered by Met Office data.
Local light pollution
Fontmell Down Nature Reserve is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to a rural location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite. For more advanced light pollution data, view this location on DarkSkySites.
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Urban
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Suburban
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Semi-rural
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Rural
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Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.
Best time to visit
The below chart shows when the skies will be at their darkest at this location and therefore the best time to visit. Moonlight is shown in light yellow and the Sun's twilight in light blue. Midnight on the date shown is shown as a white line with sunset to the left and sunrise the next morning to the right. A black background with stars shows the best times for stargazing. See our dark sky calendar for more details.
Sat 11th Jul
Sun 12th Jul
Mon 13th Jul
Tue 14th Jul
Wed 15th Jul
Thu 16th Jul
Fri 17th Jul
Find more dates
If you are planning to visit this location check our dark sky calendar to find out when is best!
CalendarEvents nearby
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