Moon Phase Today Bradford

Moon Phase Today Bradford: New Moon

On Friday, October 9, 2026, the moon in Bradford is a New Moon with 0% illumination. Moon age: 28.9 days.

Illumination
0%
Moon Age
28.9d
Next Full Moon
Oct 26
Distance
--
☽ Moonrise
6:00 AM
↑ Highest
—
☾ Moonset
5:48 PM

moon-phase-bradford-uk

☽ Best Places to View the Moon in Bradford, UK

Bradford sits in a valley among steep hills on the edge of the Pennines, with big Victorian parks in the city, a World Heritage mill village at Saltaire, and open moorland at Baildon and Ilkley within easy reach. The centre has a strong urban glow, so the best open horizons come from the higher parks and the moors, and the darkest sky is out on the moorland to the north and west.

Lister Park – Britain's Best Park 2006

A Victorian park about 3 km north-west of the centre in Manningham, bought by Bradford Corporation from Samuel Cunliffe Lister in 1870. It has the Cartwright Hall art gallery, a boating lake and the Mughal Water Garden. Bradford District Parks lists it as free to use and open 24 hours, but check the car park hours before an evening visit.

Peel Park – Viewing Platform Over the City

The first publicly owned park in the district, opened in 1852 as a memorial to Sir Robert Peel, about 1.4 miles from the centre. A viewing platform gives views over the city, which makes it a good higher-ground option for a rising or setting moon. Bradford District Parks lists it as open all year, 24 hours a day.

City Park & Centenary Square – Mirror Pool

An open public square in front of the Grade I-listed City Hall. Its mirror pool covers about 4,000 square metres and the council describes it, with more than 100 fountains, as the largest urban water feature in the UK. The still water can mirror the moon and City Hall, but the fountains and dusk lighting add movement and bright light, so pick your moment.

Roberts Park & Saltaire – World Heritage Village

A riverside park beside the River Aire in Saltaire, the UNESCO World Heritage model village built by Sir Titus Salt. Open lawns and a bandstand give a Victorian foreground for an early-evening moon. Check Bradford District Parks for current opening times.

Ilkley Moor – Pennine Gateway Nature Reserve

Open moorland rising to around 400 m, with the Cow and Calf Rocks, and part of the Bradford Pennine Gateway National Nature Reserve, declared in 2025 as the first in West Yorkshire. It has darker skies than the city, though the glow of nearby towns still reaches it. It is open access land managed by Bradford Council, so check current access and parking restrictions before a night visit.

Baildon Moor & Shipley Glen – Moorland Close to the City

Two more sites in the nature reserve, much closer to the city than Ilkley. Baildon Moor is a popular walking spot, and Shipley Glen is sloping woodland, rocks and heather just outside Saltaire. Both are easy moorland options for a new-moon night. Stay on paths, because the habitats are sensitive.

◉ Best Times for Moon Photography in Bradford

🌕 Full Moon: rises near sunset, sets near sunrise — azimuth varies by date, and a summer full moon peaks only about 13° up in the south, so you need a clear view south
🌔 Waxing gibbous — useful for early evening at Lister Park, Peel Park and Roberts Park while the foreground is still lit
🌑 New Moon — best for stars on Ilkley and Baildon Moors; save the full moon for the city parks and City Park's mirror pool

📷 Quick Photography Tips for Bradford

🎯 Use a sturdy tripod — Ilkley Moor and Baildon Moor are exposed and windy
📷 Shoot RAW and bracket — park lawns, City Hall stone and moorland gritstone are much darker than the lunar disc
📏 Looney 11 as a starting point: f/11, ISO 100, 1/100s for a bright full Moon, then check your histogram
🌕 For a moon-and-landmark shot, stand farther back and use a longer focal length of 200mm or more — Cartwright Hall and City Hall both suit it
🌃 Focus manually on the Moon's edge using magnified live view, and use a red torch on the moors to keep your night vision
🌧 Check the Met Office for West Yorkshire and the Pennines — the cloud base over the moors changes fast

🕐 Timezone: Bradford runs on GMT (UTC+0) in winter and BST (UTC+1) in summer.

Horizons: Bradford sits in a valley among steep hills, so buildings and hills can hide a low moonrise or moonset. Higher ground such as Peel Park's viewing platform and the moors gives clearer sightlines.

Light: The centre has significant light pollution. Moorland to the north and west is darker, and the Yorkshire Dales National Park, an International Dark Sky Reserve, lies beyond Ilkley.

Access: Bradford District Parks lists Lister Park and Peel Park as open 24 hours, and City Park is an open public square. Roberts Park keeps its own opening times. Ilkley Moor and Baildon Moor are open access land, so check current access and parking restrictions with Bradford Council.

Bradford works because it pairs open Victorian parks and a reflective city square with moorland on the doorstep. Use Lister Park and Peel Park for broad views and easy night access, City Park for reflections, Roberts Park for a World Heritage foreground, and the moors for stars on a new-moon night.

The moon phase today in Bradford is shown above. For the moon phase today anywhere else, visit the Dynamic Moon Phase Calculator.

◐ What the Experience Actually Feels Like

At Lister Park and Peel Park, Bradford feels Victorian and open: a boating lake and a grand art gallery in one, a viewing platform over the rooftops in the other, and both open around the clock.

At City Park and Roberts Park, it feels civic and historic, with still water in front of City Hall at one end of the evening and the mill-town terraces of Saltaire at the other.

On Ilkley Moor and Baildon Moor, it feels wild and exposed. The city falls away behind you, the wind picks up, and on a clear new-moon night the stars take over from the town.

"Open Victorian parks and a still mirror pool in the city, and Pennine moorland a short drive away for the dark sky."

✓ Your Bradford Moon Chase Checklist

Before You Go

  • Check moonrise and moonset times and azimuth for your date — a summer full moon barely clears the southern horizon here, so you need a clear view south
  • Confirm access — Lister Park and Peel Park are listed as open 24 hours, Roberts Park keeps its own times, and the moors need a check on access and parking
  • Check the Met Office for West Yorkshire and the Pennines

What to Bring

  • Telephoto 200mm+ for a tight Moon, and a wide lens for City Park's mirror pool
  • Tripod and a remote shutter or 2-second timer
  • Red torch and a warm layer for the moors
  • Lens cloth for Pennine mist

On the Night

  • Focus manually on the Moon's edge
  • Bracket exposures — one for the bright disc, one for the darker park lawns and City Hall stone
  • Stay on paths — the nature reserve's moorland habitats are sensitive
  • A Green Flag award means well maintained, not open at night — check hours before you go
Start at Lister Park or Peel Park for open city views, add City Park for reflections and Roberts Park for a Saltaire foreground, then head up onto Baildon or Ilkley Moor on a new-moon night for the darkest sky.

? Bradford Moon Phase — Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is the moon phase today in Bradford?

The moon phase today in Bradford is a New Moon with 0% illumination. The next full moon is in 17 days, on Oct 26. Moonrise is at 6:00 AM and moonset at 5:48 PM.

Q. Where is the best place to view the moon in Bradford?

Lister Park, voted Britain's Best Park in 2006, has the Cartwright Hall art gallery, a boating lake and the Mughal Water Garden, and Bradford District Parks lists it as open 24 hours. Peel Park, the first publicly owned park in the district, opened in 1852, has a viewing platform with views over the city and is also listed as open 24 hours. City Park in Centenary Square, in front of the Grade I-listed City Hall, has a mirror pool of about 4,000 square metres with more than 100 fountains, described by the council as the largest urban water feature in the UK, which can give reflections when the water is still. In Saltaire, Roberts Park has open lawns beside the River Aire within a UNESCO World Heritage village. For elevation and darker skies, Ilkley Moor, which rises to around 400 m, and the nearer Baildon Moor give open moorland horizons.

Q. Is there a dark-sky area near Bradford?

Yes. Ilkley Moor and Baildon Moor are part of the Bradford Pennine Gateway National Nature Reserve, declared in 2025 as the first National Nature Reserve in West Yorkshire. It covers about 1,270 hectares across eight sites, all owned and managed by Bradford Council, and its moorland skies are darker than the city's, though the glow of surrounding towns still reaches them. For genuinely dark skies, the Yorkshire Dales National Park, a short drive north-west beyond Ilkley, became an International Dark Sky Reserve in December 2020. Check current access and parking before a night visit, use a red torch, and stay on paths, since the moorland habitats are sensitive. Dark skies suit new-moon nights, while a bright full moon is better shot from the city parks.

Q. Where does the moon rise and set in Bradford, and how high does it climb?

At about 53.8°N, Bradford's moonrise and moonset points swing widely across the horizon each month, from roughly northeast to southeast for rising and northwest to southwest for setting, with an even wider swing in years near a major lunar standstill. A full moon near the winter solstice climbs to roughly 60° in the south, while a full moon near the summer solstice stays very low, peaking near 13°, so it needs a clear view south. Bradford sits in a valley among steep hills, so buildings and hills can hide a low moonrise or moonset, and higher ground such as Peel Park's viewing platform and the moors gives clearer sightlines. Check the azimuth for your date and exact spot.

Q. Is light pollution a problem for moon observing in Bradford?

The moon is bright enough to observe and photograph from almost anywhere in Bradford, so light pollution rarely limits the lunar disc itself. It does wash out earthshine on a thin crescent and any faint sky detail. Bradford is a large city, with a district population of over half a million people, and the centre has significant light pollution, while the moorland to the north and west is darker. The city parks suit moon-over-city and reflection shots rather than faint-sky detail.

Q. What camera settings and phases work best for moon photography in Bradford?

For a full moon, start with Looney 11 (f/11, ISO 100, 1/100 s) and refine using your histogram, since it is a baseline rather than a guarantee. The moon is much brighter than park lawns, City Hall stone and moorland gritstone, so shoot RAW and bracket or blend exposures to keep both crater detail and the foreground. A waxing gibbous is useful for early evening over Lister Park's Cartwright Hall and Roberts Park while the foreground is still lit. For a moon-and-landmark shot with Cartwright Hall or City Hall, move farther back and use a longer focal length of 200 mm or more, with a sturdy tripod and manual focus on the moon's edge using magnified live view. City Park's mirror pool can give a reflection when the water is still, though its fountains and dusk lighting add movement and bright light.

Q. How do cloud, wind and Pennine weather affect moon viewing in Bradford?

Bradford has a cool, changeable climate with frequent cloud and rain, so clear lunar windows can be short. The city sits on the edge of the Pennines, and the cloud base over the moorland can change quickly, with Ilkley Moor, which rises to around 400 m, colder and windier than the city. Mist can gather in the valleys, so bring a warm layer and a lens cloth. Check Met Office forecasts for West Yorkshire and the Pennines for cloud, mist, wind and visibility before heading out.

Q. What time zone are Bradford's moonrise and moonset times shown in?

Bradford runs on Greenwich Mean Time, UTC+0, in winter and British Summer Time, UTC+1, in summer. Clocks go forward on the last Sunday in March and back on the last Sunday in October, and moonrise and moonset times on this page follow the local clock in effect on each date. Bradford lies at about 1.8°W, close to the Greenwich meridian on which GMT is based, so clock times track the sun and moon closely.

Q. Can I shoot the moon at Bradford's viewpoints after dark?

Mostly, with limits. Bradford District Parks lists Lister Park and Peel Park as open 24 hours, but check current listings before a night visit, and check Lister Park's car park hours. City Park and Centenary Square are open public space in front of City Hall, though events can change access. Roberts Park keeps its own opening times, and a Green Flag award means well maintained, not open at night. Ilkley Moor and Baildon Moor are open access land, so check current access and parking restrictions with Bradford Council, use a red torch, and stay on paths because the moorland habitats are sensitive.