How dark is the sky in Statesville, NC?

Satellite radiance puts Statesville in the suburban edge band. A noticeable glow near the horizon. Brighter stars and constellations are easy to pick out; the Milky Way is washed out. Statesville's sky is brighter than 40.1% of the 3,206 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.

The nearest darker sky to Statesville

Davidson, NC, about 21 miles away as the crow flies, measures in the rural band, one step darker than Statesville. Actual driving distance will run longer than that straight-line figure.

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

Statesville against the rest of the dataset

Statesville, NC has a population of about 31,693, one of 3,206 US cities of 10,000 or more residents in this dataset. Among all 3,206 cities here, Statesville ranks 1,278 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.