How dark is the sky in Birmingham, AL?

Satellite radiance puts Birmingham in the inner-city band. Among the brightest skies in this dataset. Usually just the Moon and a few of the brightest stars or planets cut through. Only 98.7% of the 3,206 cities measured here read darker than Birmingham.

Worth remembering: this is satellite radiance, not a ground observation. A true Bortle rating needs a human eye at night, this is the closest large-scale substitute.

How far Birmingham is from a meaningfully darker sky

The closest place in this dataset with a meaningfully darker sky is Mountain Brook, AL, roughly 4 miles away in a straight line, rated rural. Road distance will be more.

Mountain Brook, AL is itself still a measured city, not a designated dark-sky park, this only compares against the 3,206 places this dataset covers.

Birmingham against the rest of the dataset

About 196,357 people live in Birmingham, AL, sized enough to appear in this dataset of 3,206 incorporated US cities. Among all 3,206 cities here, Birmingham ranks 3,146 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.