Stargaze Atlas

Arkansas dark-sky map — light pollution by town

39 towns rated · darkest: Bella Vista · measured from VIIRS 2024 satellite night-lights

Arkansas has 39 towns rated for light pollution here, from its darkest — Bella Vista (Bortle 5) — to its brightest city cores, with 1 rating as genuinely dark or rural sky (Bortle 4 or better). Every town is listed with the nearest measurably darker town to drive to. It also holds 1 certified International Dark Sky Place, listed below with the nearest rated town to each. Ratings are a VIIRS satellite proxy, not survey-grade sky-brightness readings.

Statewide Arkansas · VIIRS 2024
Towns rated
39

0 rate as genuinely dark or rural sky (about Bortle 4 or better).

Darkest town
Bella Vista
Genuinely dark towns
0
Certified dark-sky places
1

Certified dark-sky places in Arkansas

One site in Arkansas holds an International Dark Sky Place certification — awarded for actively protecting the night sky, not measured from orbit like the town ratings below. What each designation means →

Certified International Dark Sky Places in Arkansas.
Place Designation Coordinates Nearest rated town Distance That town's sky
Buffalo National River Dark Sky Park 35.981°N, 92.812°W Harrison 24 mi B6

All Arkansas towns by darkness

Darkest sky first, each with the nearest measurably darker town to drive to. Sort or filter below.

Arkansas towns, darkest sky first.
Sky Nearest darker sky
Bella Vista 5 Suburban sky 3.0 already the darkest nearby
Bryant 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Bella Vista — B5, 165 mi
Sherwood 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Bella Vista — B5, 165 mi
Centerton 6 Bright suburban sky 16 Bella Vista — B5, 8 mi
Malvern 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Bella Vista — B5, 170 mi
Harrison 6 Bright suburban sky 19 Bella Vista — B5, 67 mi
Helena-West Helena 6 Bright suburban sky 20 Byram, MS — B5, 165 mi
Texarkana 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Malvern — B6, 95 mi
Maumelle 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Sherwood — B6, 11 mi
Forrest City 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Helena-West Helena — B6, 35 mi
Jacksonville 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Sherwood — B6, 7 mi
Camden 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Malvern — B6, 54 mi
Arkadelphia 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Malvern — B6, 22 mi
Siloam Springs 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Centerton — B6, 19 mi
Benton 7 Suburban / urban transition 27 Bryant — B6, 6 mi
Magnolia 7 Suburban / urban transition 27 Malvern — B6, 80 mi
Fort Smith 7 Suburban / urban transition 27 Centerton — B6, 68 mi
Marion 7 Suburban / urban transition 28 Horn Lake, MS — B6, 20 mi
Van Buren 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Centerton — B6, 64 mi
Mountain Home 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Harrison — B6, 41 mi
Cabot 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Sherwood — B6, 16 mi
Paragould 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Ellendale, TN — B6, 69 mi
Blytheville 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Arlington, TN — B6, 46 mi
Russellville 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Bryant — B6, 60 mi
Conway 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Sherwood — B6, 23 mi
Fayetteville 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Centerton — B6, 22 mi
El Dorado 8 City sky 46 Camden — B7, 28 mi
West Memphis 8 City sky 46 Marion — B7, 5 mi
North Little Rock 8 City sky 47 Sherwood — B6, 4 mi
Springdale 8 City sky 48 Fayetteville — B7, 9 mi
Hot Springs 8 City sky 48 Malvern — B6, 17 mi
Bentonville 8 City sky 49 Centerton — B6, 4 mi
Pine Bluff 8 City sky 51 Bryant — B6, 38 mi
Rogers 8 City sky 53 Centerton — B6, 10 mi
Batesville 8 City sky 57 Mountain Home — B7, 57 mi
Searcy 8 City sky 60 Cabot — B7, 25 mi
Jonesboro 8 City sky 72 Paragould — B7, 19 mi
Little Rock 8 City sky 86 Sherwood — B6, 6 mi
Hot Springs Village 3 Rural sky 0.7 already the darkest nearby

Frequently asked questions

Where are the darkest skies in Arkansas?
The darkest town tracked here is Bella Vista, but the genuinely dark skies in Arkansas are its 1 certified International Dark Sky Place — Buffalo National River — listed further down with the nearest rated town to each.
How many dark-sky towns does Arkansas have?
Of 39 towns rated here, 1 rate as genuinely dark or rural sky (about Bortle 4 or better) — good for seeing the Milky Way on a clear, moonless night.
How are these light-pollution ratings measured?
From VIIRS 2024 annual-average satellite night-lights, sampled at each town's center and mapped to a darkness class and an estimated Bortle band. It is a satellite upward-radiance proxy for planning, not a survey-grade sky-brightness reading. See the methodology page for details.

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