Zebulon, NC's night sky, measured from orbit

Satellite radiance puts Zebulon in the suburban band. Light dome dominates much of the sky. Only the brightest stars and planets stand out clearly. That's brighter than 58.2% of the 3,206 US cities in this dataset.

Note the source: a satellite reading of upward light, not a visual Bortle scale reading. The two measure related but different things.

How far Zebulon is from a meaningfully darker sky

3 miles from Zebulon, straight-line, sits Wendell, NC, the nearest city here with a darker sky than Zebulon's own suburban band.

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

How Zebulon compares nationally

Zebulon, NC counts roughly 10,505 residents, among the 3,206 US cities this site tracks. Zebulon places 1,856 of 3,206 cities in this dataset's darkest-to-brightest order.