Saudi Gazette report
JEDDAH — Stars appear noticeably brighter and more sharply defined during winter nights compared with other seasons, a phenomenon that is especially clear in December, January and February, according to the Jeddah Astronomical Society.

The effect can be seen with the naked eye and is linked to the orientation of Earth’s night side relative to the Milky Way, the society said.

Majed Abu Zahra, president of the Jeddah Astronomical Society, explained that during winter nights observers are looking toward the outer regions of the Milky Way’s spiral arm where the Sun is located. These regions contain fewer stars, resulting in lower background light and darker skies.

“This reduced background illumination allows individual stars to stand out more clearly, appearing brighter and sharper,” Abu Zahra said.

In contrast, during the summer months — particularly June, July and August — the night sky faces toward the center of the Milky Way, the galaxy’s most densely populated stellar region.

The combined light from billions of stars increases background brightness, scattering light and giving the sky a hazier appearance.

As a result, individual stars are less distinct in summer, despite the greater overall concentration of stars, Abu Zahra noted.

He added that the Milky Way spans about 100,000 light-years in diameter, with its center located roughly 25,000 to 28,000 light-years from Earth. However, the galactic core cannot be observed directly in visible light because dense interstellar dust blocks the view.

The Solar System lies within a smaller spiral structure known as the Orion Arm, which is about 3,500 light-years wide and approximately 10,000 light-years long. Earth is positioned near the inner edge of this arm, roughly halfway along its length.

The society also pointed to the constellation Gemini as a prominent feature of the winter sky, dominated by bright stars that belong to the same spiral arm as the Solar System, further enhancing the season’s striking celestial display.