Cortland, NY Night Sky Brightness
Cortland, NY's night sky, measured from orbit
Satellite radiance puts Cortland in the suburban band. Light dome dominates much of the sky. Only the brightest stars and planets stand out clearly. Only 56.2% of the 3,206 cities measured here read darker than Cortland.
Note the source: a satellite reading of upward light, not a visual Bortle scale reading. The two measure related but different things, explained in the Bortle scale guide.
The nearest darker sky to Cortland
The closest place in this dataset with a meaningfully darker sky is Ithaca, NY, roughly 20 miles away in a straight line, rated suburban edge. Road distance will be more.
Ithaca, NY is itself still a measured city, not a designated dark-sky park, this only compares against the 3,206 places this dataset covers.
How Cortland compares nationally
About 17,459 people live in Cortland, NY, sized enough to appear in this dataset of 3,206 incorporated US cities. Cortland's position, 1,793 of 3,206, darkest to brightest, comes from the sampling method the methodology guide sets out.