New Study Officially Found the Place With the Least Light Pollution in the World (2024)

FAQs

New Study Officially Found the Place With the Least Light Pollution in the World? ›

Roque de los Muchachos Observatory (Canary Islands, Spain)

Chad is the country identified as having the least light pollution of all global locations, awarding it the most pristine night skies.

Big Bend National Park, Texas

In fact, it has the least light pollution of any national park in the lower 48 states, and in addition to ranger-guided stargazing programs and moonlight hikes, visitors need only look up at night to witness the starry show.

What is the darkest place on Earth at night, and what can be seen there? The darkest place on Earth at night is considered to be the Atacama Desert in Chile. Due to its high altitude, dry climate, and lack of light pollution, it offers exceptionally clear and dark skies.

Majkhali Ranikhet, Uttarakhand. Majkhali is the pride of Uttarakhand when it comes to stargazing. It is a tiny remote village near Ranikhet which is what makes it so perfect for looking at stars. The town is away from population and thus away from pollution.

Australia topped the list as the least polluted country in the world, with 6 cities in the top 25. Of the 25 least polluted cities in the world with the best air quality, Nordic countries (Finland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland) dominated the rankings with some of the cleanest air in the world in 2024.

American Southwest. Not only is the American Southwest home to a vast desert landscape, but it's also home to some of the best stargazing in the world. With extremely minimal light pollution and high altitude, the region has some of the clearest skies in the world.

That Earthly Sky Glow

Vast areas of North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia are glowing with light, while only the most remote regions on Earth (Siberia, the Sahara, and the Amazon) are in total darkness. Some of the most light-polluted countries in the world are Singapore, Qatar, and Kuwait.

The Worst U.S. Cities for Stargazing

Unfortunately, not every city has a sparkling window to the stars, and chief among them is Charlotte, North Carolina. The city has a massive 384.2 W/cm2, which absolutely overwhelms the specks of light struggling to be noticed in the sky above.

Dark Sky Places are all over the world

There are now over 160,000 square kilometers of protected land and night skies in 22 countries on 6 continents, and the list grows every year as new places achieve certification.

Where is the darkest place in the United States? ›

Death Valley National Park, California-Nevada

Astronomical objects seen in Death Valley are available only to some of the darkest locations across in the world. Death Valley is also the largest U.S. National Park outside Alaska at 3.4 million acres.

The International Dark-Sky Association has designated Death Valley National Park a Gold Tier Dark Sky Park, which is the highest rating of darkness.

Dark sky preserves, reserves, and parks

As of January 2023, there are 201 certified Dark Sky Places globally: 38 Communities, 115 Parks, 20 Reserves, 16 Sanctuaries, 6 Developments of Distinction and 6 Urban Night Sky Places.

The national preserve joins Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park in Central Florida, which was designated earlier in 2016, as the first International Dark Sky Place in Florida.

At a place with no light pollution and pristine skies, you can see about 4000 stars (depending on the season and your vision). The number seems low, but it's 40x what we usually can see in metro areas. At a dark site the sky will actually be dark, seemingly black. The stars are bright, even the smaller ones.

Why are there no more stars to see Canada's night time? They were turned off to reduce carbon emissions;-) Unfortunately the light pollution makes them difficult to see in the city, even in the country unless you are far from towns, even neighbours.

That Earthly Sky Glow

Vast areas of North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia are glowing with light, while only the most remote regions on Earth (Siberia, the Sahara, and the Amazon) are in total darkness. Some of the most light-polluted countries in the world are Singapore, Qatar, and Kuwait.

By population, Singapore has the world's most light-polluted skies, followed by Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates—all densely populated countries. Africa has the dimmest skies; the top 10 least polluted countries are on the continent.

According to the Center for Biological Diversity (Tucson, Arizona) in 2018, the worst city in the world for light pollution is Saint Petersburg, Russia, where artificial lighting is 8.1 times brighter than the global urban average.