How dark is the sky in Washington, IL?

Washington's sky measures suburban edge here. A noticeable glow near the horizon. Brighter stars and constellations are easy to pick out; the Milky Way is washed out. That's brighter than 41.6% of the 3,206 US 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.

Where to go for a darker sky near Washington

Plano, IL, about 82 miles away as the crow flies, measures in the dark sky band, one step darker than Washington. Actual driving distance will run longer than that straight-line figure.

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

Washington against the rest of the dataset

Washington, IL counts roughly 15,857 residents, among the 3,206 US cities this site tracks. Among all 3,206 cities here, Washington ranks 1,328 from darkest to brightest, 1 being the darkest measured.