Shiloh, PA — light pollution & stargazing
Shiloh, Pennsylvania has a light-pollution rating of about Bortle 1-2 — a truly dark sky (excellent dark sky) — measured from VIIRS 2024 satellite night-lights at 0.1 nW/cm²/sr at the town center. The Milky Way is bright enough to cast faint shadows; the zodiacal light and airglow are obvious, and dozens of deep-sky objects show to the naked eye. This is about as dark as skies get in the U.S. It is already among the darkest towns in the country — you likely won't find much darker without leaving the region. Tonight's Moon phase, cloud cover, and aurora odds load live below, computed in your browser. This is a satellite upward-radiance proxy for planning, not a survey-grade sky-brightness measurement.
Data check: this rating is unusually dark for a town of 11,217 people, which can mean the satellite reading was sampled just outside the built-up area. Treat it as approximate — see the methodology for how these ratings are measured.
Stargazing in Shiloh tonight
- Estimated Bortle class
- 1-2 of 9
- VIIRS radiance (town center)
- 0.1 nW/cm²/sr
- Naked-eye limiting mag.
- 7.6–8.0
- Milky Way
- casts shadows
Truly dark sky. A satellite upward-radiance proxy for planning — not a survey-grade sky-brightness reading.
What you can see from Shiloh
The Milky Way is bright enough to cast faint shadows; the zodiacal light and airglow are obvious, and dozens of deep-sky objects show to the naked eye. This is about as dark as skies get in the U.S.
Darker skies within reach
Shiloh is already among the darkest towns tracked here — there's no meaningfully darker town nearby. You're in a good spot; just get away from local lights and let your eyes adapt.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you see the Milky Way from Shiloh, PA?
- Yes. At about Bortle 1-2, the Milky Way casts shadows from Shiloh on a clear, moonless night away from local lights.
- How dark is the sky in Shiloh?
- Shiloh rates a truly dark sky — about Bortle 1-2, with a naked-eye limiting magnitude around 7.6–8.0. That comes from a VIIRS satellite night-lights reading of 0.1 nW/cm²/sr at the town center. It is a satellite proxy for planning, not a survey-grade measurement.
- Where is the nearest dark sky to Shiloh?
- Shiloh is already among the darkest towns tracked here, so there is no meaningfully darker town nearby — you're in a good spot.
- Can I see the aurora from Shiloh tonight?
- It depends on tonight's space weather. The live panel on this page reads the current NOAA aurora forecast for your latitude, along with cloud cover and the Moon — most U.S. locations only see aurora during strong geomagnetic storms.
The darkness rating is measured from VIIRS satellite night-lights at the town center and is a proxy for planning, not a survey-grade sky-brightness measurement — and the darkest skies are usually a short drive out of any town. Tonight's Moon, cloud, and aurora figures are live third-party forecasts that can change. See the methodology for sources and limits.
More in Pennsylvania
See every town's darkness rating in Pennsylvania, learn to read the Bortle scale, or check tonight's Moon phase.