Best weather conditions/time of year?

[Peter Laing]

Ok, may seem a dumb question: non-cloudy skies is a good start I know! But is the quality of view of the night sky affected by anything else, i.e. temperature, time of day, time of year?

Maybe it's just psychological, but I always think the night sky looks crisper (to the naked eye) on a frosty night than it does in the summer.

[leenewtoastro]

i wonder if pressure makes for altering the way light travel?

[BrianH]

I may be wrong, but I think that colder temperatures may mean less turbulence in the atmosphere which gives better seeing conditions. I'm sure some of the experts will confirm or refute this.