What the night sky looks like over Rochester, MI

Rochester reads as suburban on this dataset's scale. Light dome dominates much of the sky. Only the brightest stars and planets stand out clearly. Rochester's sky is brighter than 73.1% of the 3,206 cities in this dataset.

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 Rochester is from a meaningfully darker sky

Rochester Hills, MI, about 3 miles away as the crow flies, measures in the suburban edge band, one step darker than Rochester. Actual driving distance will run longer than that straight-line figure.

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.

Rochester against the rest of the dataset

About 12,978 people live in Rochester, MI, sized enough to appear in this dataset of 3,206 incorporated US cities. Among all 3,206 cities here, Rochester ranks 2,330 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.