Jaspers's second annual Dark Sky Festival was once again a big success. Come celebrate our third Annual Dark Sky Festival on Oct 26-27, 2013. Visit www.jasperdarkskyfest.com for details on events and special packages.
The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada has officially designated Jasper National Park as a Dark Sky Preserve. At 11,228km2, Jasper is the largest Dark Sky Preserve in the world, and the only preserve in Canada with a town wholly within the preserve. Most of Jasper National Park has excellent dark skies; the southern part of the park boasts truly dark skies. This is one of the only areas in southwestern Canada with exceptional darkness, yet is accessible by year-round road and offers multiple accommodation facilities.
There are several public observation sites in the park that have excellent opportunities for star gazing, and offer accommodation nearby. The two main sites are:
Pyramid Island. Within 15 minutes from Jasper, this magical place offers excellent dark skies with a scenic lake and Pyramid Mountain as backdrop.
Athabasca Glacier. Experience the darkest skies in the park in a spectacular alpine environment, yet within a kilometre of a hotel and two campgrounds.
The park also offers several excellent observation sites for groups and events. These are not normally accessible to the public after dark, but can be reserved for use by star gazing groups or events.
These forecasts predict stargazing conditions in Jasper for the next 48 hours. Click on the bars for a detailed forecast.
Marmot Meadows 
Athabasca Glacier
Jasper House Viewpoint
Maligne Lake
Aurora forecast for central Alberta
Aurora forecast for North America
There are a lot of resources to help both beginning and advanced star gazers, including apps, software, books and maps. We've collected a sample of the best resources.
