How dark is the sky in Prior Lake, MN?

Prior Lake reads as rural on this dataset's scale. Little local light dome. Most stars are visible; the Milky Way is faint but often findable away from town lights. Only 10.7% of the 3,206 cities measured here read darker than Prior Lake.

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 Prior Lake is from a meaningfully darker sky

The closest place in this dataset with a meaningfully darker sky is Victoria, MN, roughly 15 miles away in a straight line, rated dark sky. Road distance will be more.

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

Prior Lake against the rest of the dataset

Prior Lake, MN counts roughly 28,018 residents, among the 3,206 US cities this site tracks. Among all 3,206 cities here, Prior Lake ranks 343 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.