Stargaze Atlas

Minnesota dark-sky map — light pollution by town

100 towns rated · darkest: East Bethel · measured from VIIRS 2024 satellite night-lights

Minnesota has 100 towns rated for light pollution here, from its darkest — East Bethel (Bortle 4) — to its brightest city cores, with 3 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 Minnesota · VIIRS 2024
Towns rated
100

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

Darkest town
East Bethel
Genuinely dark towns
3
Certified dark-sky places
1

Certified dark-sky places in Minnesota

One site in Minnesota 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 Minnesota.
Place Designation Coordinates Nearest rated town Distance That town's sky
Voyageurs National Park Dark Sky Park 48.500°N, 92.883°W Hibbing 74 mi B7

All Minnesota towns by darkness

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

Minnesota towns, darkest sky first.
Sky Nearest darker sky
East Bethel 4 Rural / suburban transition 1.8 already the darkest nearby
Lino Lakes 4 Rural / suburban transition 2.0 already the darkest nearby
Ham Lake 4 Rural / suburban transition 2.2 already the darkest nearby
Otsego 5 Suburban sky 3.0 Ham Lake — B4, 17 mi
Ramsey 5 Suburban sky 3.3 Ham Lake — B4, 10 mi
Andover 5 Suburban sky 5.7 Ham Lake — B4, 2 mi
Minnetonka Mills 5 Suburban sky 5.9 Lino Lakes — B4, 23 mi
Vadnais Heights 5 Suburban sky 6.3 Lino Lakes — B4, 7 mi
Coon Rapids 5 Suburban sky 7.1 Ham Lake — B4, 9 mi
Eagan 6 Bright suburban sky 8.6 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 17 mi
Mendota Heights 6 Bright suburban sky 8.8 Vadnais Heights — B5, 12 mi
West Coon Rapids 6 Bright suburban sky 9.1 Coon Rapids — B5, 4 mi
Hugo 6 Bright suburban sky 9.4 Lino Lakes — B4, 5 mi
Hopkins 6 Bright suburban sky 9.8 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 2 mi
Inver Grove Heights 6 Bright suburban sky 11 Vadnais Heights — B5, 15 mi
Buffalo 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Otsego — B5, 16 mi
Eden Prairie 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 6 mi
North Branch 6 Bright suburban sky 12 East Bethel — B4, 17 mi
Saint Michael 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Otsego — B5, 6 mi
Edina 6 Bright suburban sky 13 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 6 mi
West Saint Paul 6 Bright suburban sky 13 Vadnais Heights — B5, 10 mi
Big Lake 6 Bright suburban sky 13 Otsego — B5, 9 mi
Crystal 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Coon Rapids — B5, 7 mi
Maple Grove 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Coon Rapids — B5, 9 mi
Burnsville 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 14 mi
Fairmont 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 100 mi
Minnetonka 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 4 mi
Golden Valley 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 7 mi
Elk River 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Otsego — B5, 2 mi
North Mankato 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 61 mi
Prior Lake 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 16 mi
Mounds View 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Coon Rapids — B5, 4 mi
Fridley 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Coon Rapids — B5, 3 mi
Red Wing 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Vadnais Heights — B5, 43 mi
Sartell 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Otsego — B5, 38 mi
Savage 6 Bright suburban sky 20 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 12 mi
Mankato 6 Bright suburban sky 20 Minnetonka Mills — B5, 61 mi
Little Canada 7 Suburban / urban transition 20 Vadnais Heights — B5, 2 mi
Shoreview 7 Suburban / urban transition 20 Mounds View — B6, 4 mi
Forest Lake 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Hugo — B6, 8 mi
Worthington 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Fairmont — B6, 57 mi
Champlin 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 West Coon Rapids — B6, 3 mi
Sauk Rapids 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 Sartell — B6, 3 mi
Hastings 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Inver Grove Heights — B6, 12 mi
New Brighton 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Mounds View — B6, 3 mi
Lakeville 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Burnsville — B6, 8 mi
Cottage Grove 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Inver Grove Heights — B6, 5 mi
Cloquet 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 North Branch — B6, 87 mi
Winona 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Onalaska, WI — B6, 23 mi
Hutchinson 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Buffalo — B6, 31 mi
Stillwater 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Hudson, WI — B6, 6 mi
New Hope 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Crystal — B6, 1 mi
Austin 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Mankato — B6, 62 mi
Shakopee 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Eden Prairie — B6, 5 mi
Farmington 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Burnsville — B6, 11 mi
Rogers 7 Suburban / urban transition 26 Saint Michael — B6, 6 mi
Saint Louis Park 7 Suburban / urban transition 27 Edina — B6, 4 mi
Saint Peter 7 Suburban / urban transition 27 North Mankato — B6, 11 mi
White Bear Lake 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Vadnais Heights — B5, 4 mi
Longfellow Community 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Mendota Heights — B6, 6 mi
Alexandria 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Sartell — B6, 59 mi
Northfield 7 Suburban / urban transition 30 Prior Lake — B6, 22 mi
Fergus Falls 7 Suburban / urban transition 30 Sartell — B6, 100 mi
North Saint Paul 7 Suburban / urban transition 31 Vadnais Heights — B5, 5 mi
Oakdale 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 West Saint Paul — B6, 7 mi
Robbinsdale 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Crystal — B6, 1 mi
Brooklyn Park 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Coon Rapids — B5, 4 mi
Marshall 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Fairmont — B6, 86 mi
Roseville 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Vadnais Heights — B5, 5 mi
Owatonna 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Mankato — B6, 39 mi
Albert Lea 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Mankato — B6, 48 mi
Columbia Heights 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Fridley — B6, 3 mi
Hibbing 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 North Branch — B6, 130 mi
Rosemount 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Eagan — B6, 5 mi
Duluth 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 North Branch — B6, 97 mi
Monticello 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Big Lake — B6, 3 mi
Waconia 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Minnetonka — B6, 15 mi
New Ulm 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 North Mankato — B6, 23 mi
Richfield 7 Suburban / urban transition 35 Edina — B6, 3 mi
Grand Rapids 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Sartell — B6, 115 mi
Willmar 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Sartell — B6, 53 mi
Brainerd 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Sartell — B6, 51 mi
Blaine 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Coon Rapids — B5, 4 mi
Bemidji 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Sartell — B6, 130 mi
Anoka 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 West Coon Rapids — B6, 3 mi
Chanhassen 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Eden Prairie — B6, 3 mi
Faribault 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Prior Lake — B6, 30 mi
Bloomington 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Edina — B6, 4 mi
Woodbury 7 Suburban / urban transition 40 Inver Grove Heights — B6, 7 mi
South Saint Paul 8 City sky 41 Inver Grove Heights — B6, 3 mi
Chaska 8 City sky 41 Shakopee — B7, 4 mi
Rochester 8 City sky 47 Austin — B7, 35 mi
Maplewood 8 City sky 49 Oakdale — B7, 2 mi
Plymouth 8 City sky 50 New Hope — B7, 4 mi
Brooklyn Center 8 City sky 51 Brooklyn Park — B7, 2 mi
Moorhead 8 City sky 57 West Fargo, ND — B7, 6 mi
Saint Cloud 8 City sky 64 Sauk Rapids — B7, 2 mi
Apple Valley 8 City sky 98 Burnsville — B6, 4 mi
Saint Paul 8 City sky 98 West Saint Paul — B6, 2 mi
Minneapolis 9 Inner-city sky 164 Longfellow Community — B7, 3 mi

Frequently asked questions

Where are the darkest skies in Minnesota?
The darkest town tracked here is East Bethel, but the genuinely dark skies in Minnesota are its 1 certified International Dark Sky Place — Voyageurs National Park — listed further down with the nearest rated town to each.
How many dark-sky towns does Minnesota have?
Of 100 towns rated here, 3 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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