Pontiac, MI Night Sky Brightness
Pontiac, MI's night sky, measured from orbit
Pontiac 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 60.4% of the 3,206 cities measured here read darker than Pontiac.
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 Pontiac
The closest place in this dataset with a meaningfully darker sky is Rochester Hills, MI, roughly 7 miles away in a straight line, rated suburban edge. Road distance will be more.
Rochester Hills, MI is itself still a measured city, not a designated dark-sky park, this only compares against the 3,206 places this dataset covers.
How Pontiac compares nationally
Pontiac, MI counts roughly 62,528 residents, among the 3,206 US cities this site tracks. Pontiac's position, 1,926 of 3,206, darkest to brightest, comes from the sampling method the methodology guide sets out.