What the night sky looks like over Hinsdale, IL

Hinsdale reads as suburban on this dataset's scale. Light dome dominates much of the sky. Only the brightest stars and planets stand out clearly. Only 69% of the 3,206 cities measured here read darker than Hinsdale.

The number comes from orbit, not a stargazer's logbook, so treat it as an estimate of sky glow rather than a certified Bortle class.

How far Hinsdale is from a meaningfully darker sky

Darien, IL, about 5 miles away as the crow flies, measures in the suburban edge band, one step darker than Hinsdale. Actual driving distance will run longer than that straight-line figure.

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

Hinsdale against the rest of the dataset

About 17,598 people live in Hinsdale, IL, sized enough to appear in this dataset of 3,206 incorporated US cities. Among all 3,206 cities here, Hinsdale ranks 2,199 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.