Gastonia, NC Night Sky Brightness
How dark is the sky in Gastonia, NC?
Satellite radiance puts Gastonia in the suburban band. Light dome dominates much of the sky. Only the brightest stars and planets stand out clearly. That's brighter than 50.8% of the 3,206 US cities in this dataset.
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, covered fully in the Bortle scale guide.
Where to go for a darker sky near Gastonia
8 miles from Gastonia, straight-line, sits Belmont, NC, the nearest city here with a darker sky than Gastonia's own suburban band.
Belmont, NC is itself still a measured city, not a designated dark-sky park, this only compares against the 3,206 places this dataset covers.
Gastonia against the rest of the dataset
Gastonia, NC counts roughly 85,535 residents, among the 3,206 US cities this site tracks. Ranked against the other 3,206 cities here by the methodology guide's own sampling, Gastonia comes in at 1,621, darkest to brightest.