Canberra, Australia's capital, sits inland at 580m elevation with Bortle 6 city skies and quick access to dark country. The surrounding hills and the Namadgi National Park to the south-west reach Bortle 3–4 within an hour, and the historic Mount Stromlo and Siding Spring observatories reflect the region's astronomical importance — Siding Spring, a few hours north, is Australia's premier optical observatory. The inland position gives drier, clearer air than the coast. At 35.3°S, the southern sky is superbly presented, with the winter Milky Way core standing high over the dark ranges.