Can you see Key Biscayne, Miami from Havana (El Morro lighthouse)?

No, Earth is in the way

359 km line of sight toward the northeast (bearing 38°), computed on 30 m Copernicus terrain with Earth curvature and standard atmospheric refraction.

The answer

No. Key Biscayne, Miami is 359 km from Havana and sits about 7,825 m below the horizon at standard refraction: Earth's curvature hides it.

Looking north from the El Morro lighthouse, the question reverses: Havana stands 30 m up on the harbour wall and Miami is flat. Does the extra height on the Cuban side change the answer?

Straight-line distance359 km

Direction38° northeast

Observer eye level30 m

Target elevation10 m

Curvature drop at the target8,835 m

Hidden below the sightline7,825 m

No terrain trickery needed here: the planet itself is the obstacle. Over 359 km, Earth's curvature drops Key Biscayne, Miami a full 8,835 m below a flat sightline, leaving its summit about 7,825 m under the grazing line from Havana (El Morro lighthouse). No viewpoint at this location, however clear the day, can see over that.

The terrain profile

Elevation profile from Havana (El Morro lighthouse) to Key Biscayne, Miami. Like every elevation profile, the vertical axis is stretched (≈15× here), but the geometry is real: mid-path, Earth's surface genuinely stands 2,534 m above the straight line between the two points (the dashed arc is sea level). Light bends only slightly around that bulge, so whatever it covers stays hidden. Each ray runs solid until terrain cuts it, then continues as the faint ghost of the sightline you would need. Even the stronger-bending ray of a thermal inversion (k = 0.17) stays cut off.

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Frequently asked questions

Can you see Key Biscayne, Miami from Havana (El Morro lighthouse)?

No, not under standard atmospheric conditions. Across 359 km, the view is cut off before reaching the target (see the terrain profile above for exactly where).

How far is Key Biscayne, Miami from Havana (El Morro lighthouse) in a straight line?

359 km great-circle distance, on a bearing of 38° (northeast).

What exactly blocks the view?

Earth's curvature. Over this distance the target drops about 8,835 m below a flat sightline and ends up roughly 7,825 m below the horizon. Only exceptional atmospheric refraction can (sometimes) lift it into view.

How was this calculated?

UpToWhere walks the full terrain profile between the two points on 30 m-resolution Copernicus GLO-30 elevation data, applying Earth curvature and standard atmospheric refraction (k = 0.13), the same physics surveyors use. You can run the same point-to-point check between any two places on Earth.

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