Stargaze Atlas

Virginia dark-sky map — light pollution by town

107 towns rated · darkest: Brandermill · measured from VIIRS 2024 satellite night-lights

Virginia has 107 towns rated for light pollution here, from its darkest — Brandermill (Bortle 5) — to its brightest city cores, with 0 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 Virginia · VIIRS 2024
Towns rated
107

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

Darkest town
Brandermill
Genuinely dark towns
0
Certified dark-sky places
1

Certified dark-sky places in Virginia

One site in Virginia 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 Virginia.
Place Designation Coordinates Nearest rated town Distance That town's sky
James River State Park Dark Sky Park 37.622°N, 78.817°W Madison Heights 21 mi B6

All Virginia towns by darkness

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

Virginia towns, darkest sky first.
Sky Nearest darker sky
Brandermill 5 Suburban sky 3.0 Chesapeake Ranch Estates, MD — B4, 92 mi
Poquoson 5 Suburban sky 4.0 Chesapeake Ranch Estates, MD — B4, 85 mi
Lowes Island 5 Suburban sky 4.6 Green Valley, MD — B4, 18 mi
Buckhall 5 Suburban sky 5.2 Green Valley, MD — B4, 41 mi
Wolf Trap 5 Suburban sky 5.9 Green Valley, MD — B4, 26 mi
Glen Allen 5 Suburban sky 6.7 Chesapeake Ranch Estates, MD — B4, 76 mi
Montclair 5 Suburban sky 6.9 Green Valley, MD — B4, 48 mi
Mount Vernon 5 Suburban sky 7.1 Green Valley, MD — B4, 43 mi
Cherry Hill 5 Suburban sky 7.2 Chesapeake Ranch Estates-Drum Point, MD — B4, 48 mi
Timberlake 5 Suburban sky 7.3 Chesapeake Ranch Estates, MD — B4, 170 mi
Hollins 5 Suburban sky 7.9 Green Valley, MD — B4, 200 mi
Bon Air 6 Bright suburban sky 8.0 Brandermill — B5, 8 mi
West Springfield 6 Bright suburban sky 8.6 Mount Vernon — B5, 8 mi
Madison Heights 6 Bright suburban sky 9.7 Timberlake — B5, 11 mi
Tuckahoe 6 Bright suburban sky 9.7 Glen Allen — B5, 6 mi
Kings Park West 6 Bright suburban sky 10 Wolf Trap — B5, 9 mi
Great Falls 6 Bright suburban sky 10 Wolf Trap — B5, 4 mi
Oak Hill 6 Bright suburban sky 10 Wolf Trap — B5, 6 mi
Lake Ridge 6 Bright suburban sky 11 Montclair — B5, 6 mi
Linton Hall 6 Bright suburban sky 11 Buckhall — B5, 8 mi
Fairfax Station 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Buckhall — B5, 7 mi
Dranesville 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Lowes Island — B5, 4 mi
Dale City 6 Bright suburban sky 12 Montclair — B5, 2 mi
Lakeside 6 Bright suburban sky 13 Glen Allen — B5, 4 mi
Ashburn 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Lowes Island — B5, 7 mi
Broadlands 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Lowes Island — B5, 10 mi
Radford 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Hollins — B5, 38 mi
Cave Spring 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Hollins — B5, 9 mi
Rose Hill 6 Bright suburban sky 14 Mount Vernon — B5, 5 mi
Burke 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Buckhall — B5, 10 mi
Fort Hunt 6 Bright suburban sky 15 Fort Washington, MD — B5, 3 mi
Sudley 6 Bright suburban sky 16 Buckhall — B5, 6 mi
Meadowbrook 6 Bright suburban sky 16 Brandermill — B5, 10 mi
Reston 6 Bright suburban sky 16 Wolf Trap — B5, 4 mi
Woodlawn 6 Bright suburban sky 16 Mount Vernon — B5, 2 mi
Mechanicsville 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Glen Allen — B5, 8 mi
Sugarland Run 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Lowes Island — B5, 2 mi
Staunton 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Timberlake — B5, 58 mi
Idylwood 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Wolf Trap — B5, 5 mi
South Suffolk 6 Bright suburban sky 17 Poquoson — B5, 31 mi
Christiansburg 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Hollins — B5, 30 mi
West Falls Church 6 Bright suburban sky 18 Wolf Trap — B5, 7 mi
Lorton 6 Bright suburban sky 19 Mount Vernon — B5, 7 mi
Front Royal 6 Bright suburban sky 19 Buckhall — B5, 43 mi
Manassas Park 6 Bright suburban sky 19 Buckhall — B5, 4 mi
East Highland Park 7 Suburban / urban transition 20 Mechanicsville — B6, 3 mi
Chester 7 Suburban / urban transition 21 Meadowbrook — B6, 7 mi
Laurel 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 Glen Allen — B5, 2 mi
East Hampton 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 Poquoson — B5, 6 mi
Highland Springs 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 Mechanicsville — B6, 5 mi
Waynesboro 7 Suburban / urban transition 22 Staunton — B6, 12 mi
Colonial Heights 7 Suburban / urban transition 23 Meadowbrook — B6, 13 mi
West Lynchburg 7 Suburban / urban transition 23 Madison Heights — B6, 4 mi
Midlothian 7 Suburban / urban transition 23 Brandermill — B5, 5 mi
Culpeper 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Linton Hall — B6, 30 mi
Oakton 7 Suburban / urban transition 24 Wolf Trap — B5, 4 mi
Vienna 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Wolf Trap — B5, 3 mi
Williamsburg 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Poquoson — B5, 22 mi
Franconia 7 Suburban / urban transition 25 Rose Hill — B6, 2 mi
Charlottesville 7 Suburban / urban transition 28 Staunton — B6, 34 mi
Martinsville 7 Suburban / urban transition 28 Eden, NC — B5, 15 mi
McLean 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 Idylwood — B6, 3 mi
Portsmouth Heights 7 Suburban / urban transition 29 South Suffolk — B6, 14 mi
South Riding 7 Suburban / urban transition 30 Oak Hill — B6, 6 mi
Annandale 7 Suburban / urban transition 31 West Falls Church — B6, 2 mi
Bull Run 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Sudley — B6, 1 mi
Danville 7 Suburban / urban transition 32 Eden, NC — B5, 22 mi
Fredericksburg 7 Suburban / urban transition 33 Cherry Hill — B5, 21 mi
Blacksburg 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Christiansburg — B6, 7 mi
Hopewell 7 Suburban / urban transition 34 Meadowbrook — B6, 14 mi
Salem 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Cave Spring — B6, 5 mi
Fairfax 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Kings Park West — B6, 2 mi
Short Pump 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Tuckahoe — B6, 5 mi
Winchester 7 Suburban / urban transition 36 Front Royal — B6, 19 mi
Springfield 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 West Springfield — B6, 2 mi
Countryside 7 Suburban / urban transition 37 Sugarland Run — B6, 2 mi
Huntington 7 Suburban / urban transition 38 Rose Hill — B6, 2 mi
Groveton 7 Suburban / urban transition 39 Rose Hill — B6, 2 mi
Falls Church 7 Suburban / urban transition 39 West Falls Church — B6, 2 mi
Herndon 7 Suburban / urban transition 40 Reston — B6, 2 mi
Gainesville 8 City sky 42 Linton Hall — B6, 3 mi
Leesburg 8 City sky 42 Ashburn — B6, 6 mi
Centreville 8 City sky 42 Manassas Park — B6, 5 mi
Lynchburg 8 City sky 44 Madison Heights — B6, 2 mi
Harrisonburg 8 City sky 45 Staunton — B6, 24 mi
Lincolnia 8 City sky 48 Franconia — B7, 3 mi
Alexandria 8 City sky 49 Huntington — B7, 2 mi
Manassas 8 City sky 49 Manassas Park — B6, 2 mi
Petersburg 8 City sky 50 Colonial Heights — B7, 3 mi
Newington 8 City sky 51 West Springfield — B6, 3 mi
Hybla Valley 8 City sky 51 Groveton — B7, 1 mi
Chesapeake 8 City sky 52 Portsmouth Heights — B7, 5 mi
Baileys Crossroads 8 City sky 53 Falls Church — B7, 3 mi
Bristol 8 City sky 55 Elizabethton, TN — B7, 17 mi
Hampton 8 City sky 60 East Hampton — B7, 1 mi
Suffolk 8 City sky 62 South Suffolk — B6, 1 mi
Sterling 8 City sky 64 Countryside — B7, 3 mi
Arlington 8 City sky 65 Falls Church — B7, 4 mi
Newport News 8 City sky 69 East Hampton — B7, 7 mi
Virginia Beach 8 City sky 80 Portsmouth Heights — B7, 22 mi
Merrifield 8 City sky 81 Idylwood — B6, 2 mi
Portsmouth 8 City sky 82 Portsmouth Heights — B7, 4 mi
Richmond 8 City sky 84 East Highland Park — B7, 4 mi
Chantilly 8 City sky 95 Oak Hill — B6, 3 mi
Roanoke 8 City sky 96 Hollins — B5, 5 mi
Tysons 9 Inner-city sky 102 Idylwood — B6, 2 mi
Norfolk 9 Inner-city sky 107 Portsmouth — B8, 1 mi

Frequently asked questions

Where are the darkest skies in Virginia?
The darkest town tracked here is Brandermill, but the genuinely dark skies in Virginia are its 1 certified International Dark Sky Place — James River State Park — listed further down with the nearest rated town to each.
How many dark-sky towns does Virginia have?
Of 107 towns rated here, 0 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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